Star Fox: Filling the Void
by ThatWinchieGuy
Summary: A prequel to my previous fic, Star Fox: My Life is Yours. Recommend you read that first, but it's not required...A young Fox McCloud fights back the pain in his mind. Rating may go up to M in the future.
1. Exposition

**Welcome to my newest fic, the prequel to my fic **_**Star Fox: My Life is Yours. **_**I hope you enjoy, and remember to leave a review if you decided to read the whole thing. Thanks!**

**-ThatWinchieGuy**

_Love._

Why did that word seem to linger in his head so often these days? He hated life, love, everything. Still, something, somewhere told him that the word _love_ was important. What good had it ever done him? What good would it _ever _do him?

Love, to Fox, was nothing more than the illusion of joy; the very thing that drives all sentient things to their demise. "Love makes you weak," he would often say, "I've experienced it first-hand."

Did he really have a right to say that? He thought he'd been in love before, but had he really? Fox wasn't sure; he was still very young. Far more mature than other 18 year olds, mind you, but still very young.

Only two years had passed. It seemed like an eternity. Fox was ready to retire now and be done with it. He knew he couldn't, but if the opportunity presented itself, Fox would have a hard time turning it down. Two, long, arduous years.

…..

Fox still remembered that day to the smallest detail; even the number of Venomian fighters swarming into the large antechamber.

47.

He remembered they were everywhere; swooping in left and right, smashing into each other, into him. Red lasers clouded his vision like a fog. It was then that James McCloud's face appeared on his communications channel.

"Fox, you need to leave."

"I'm not going to let you die here, Dad!"

17 lasers flew by his cockpit, one striking the cargo bay in the nose.

"GO! YOU HAVE TO, NOW!" James was screaming as Fox's world entered into a blur. True, if Fox wanted to survive, he'd have to go, and now.

"You're too far away! Dad!"

"I love you, son." James said, his signature smirk across his face, the click of the communications channel ceasing to exist.

Then an explosion in the distance.

"NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOooooooooo…." Fox's shrieks of terror and hatred drained from his brain. He remembered shuddering behind the Arwing's controls for hours, finally landing back in Corneria.

One thing Fox didn't remember was how he spent those first few nights, when all notions of gods, love, and joy left him alone in the cold, snowy streets on Corneria. He wandered aimlessly for days, screaming at passerby and innocent commuters, spitting and barking at children. People must have thought him mad. Fox thought himself mad.

Soon- perhaps weeks even, Fox couldn't remember, or didn't want to- Fox began to gain control over himself. He had to do something; he couldn't let his father's death be in vain. All for nothing.

That wasn't true; Fox was still here. He was still living, breathing. He could still fight. What to do now?

He decided to re-form the Star Fox team. Within two months, Fox McCloud, Slippy Toad, Falco Lombardi, and Peppy Hare all found themselves aboard the Great Fox, cleaning the control room.

…

Fox scoffed at himself, lying awake in his bunk. What a useless piece of garbage he turned out to be. No accolades, slowly burning through his inheritance, all because he was chasing a dream. The dream of revenge.

Fox didn't believe Andross was dead. No, not yet. He wanted Andross to see the hatred in his eyes, the pure depths of hell before him. If Fox ever saw him, face to face… Andross would pay. He'd rip him limb from limb, spraying his intestines all over the walls, the floor, the sky itself.

Fox was trembling with anger, breathing heavily, his paws balled into white-knuckled fists. He began to do a breathing exercise; one Peppy had taught him to calm him down in these situations. They worked, but it was never long before Fox again was biting cuts into his lower lip, gnawing at the air, shaking with fury.

Where had he done right in his life? Nowhere, apparently; he was a failure of a mercenary leader, he let his father die, he shook uncontrollably with frustration….he couldn't do anything right, he scared away any person he ever loved.

Fox didn't think he could love again. Nobody would ever love a bloodthirsty psycho anyways. He'd live his entire life alone; he'd need to accept that.

….

Fox stood up, perspiring from the heat in the room, and walked out into the hallway, wearing only sweatpants.

"Falco, up!" Fox rapped on the avian's door.

"Slippy!" Fox commanded.

Peppy was already up; he was always up before Fox. Fox walked into the kitchen and found him there, as he usually did every morning.

"Any missions coming in? Fox asked, an angry look on his face.

"Actually, one might be. Pepper contacted me earlier this morning and told me a situation might be developing on Sauria. He says whole continents of the planet are being ripped from the surface." Peppy said, loading bread into the toaster.

"Never been," Fox said, detached from the situation. He always tried to cheer up a bit around his teammates, his friends, but….what had he to be cheery about?

"Have you been doing to exercises I taught you?" Peppy asked, clearly taking note of Fox's less than joyful mood.

"Yes." Fox mumbled.

"Well, they don't seem to be working very well." Peppy joked. Had the nudge come from anybody else, Fox might have snapped and went ballistic. He just never seemed to mind Peppy's jokes.

"I'm going to the gym," Fox said, standing up, disregarding Peppy's presence.

"Poor kid…."

….

_Seven._

_Eight._

_Nine. _

_Ten!_

Fox groaned as he dropped down from the pull up bar. Well, more of an iron rod shoved into the doorway, but Fox called it the pull up bar.

_We really need some money,_ Fox thought, looking around at all the old and outdated exercise equipment.

The whole ship looked this way; like it was held together by superglue and duct tape.

_That mission on Sauria has to happen, or we're screwed, _Fox thought.


	2. Mission on Sauria

"Yes?" Fox asked, lying on his bed in his bunk in the middle of the day. Not a common occurrence, but what else did he have to do?

"Peppy's receiving a transmission from General Pepper! This might be it!" Slippy yelled through the door excitedly. Fox jolted up. Finally, something to ease his mind.

….

"General Pepper here! I have a new mission for you, Star Fox! You will be operating on Dinosaur Planet, an ancient world on the edge of the Lylat System. As you approach, you will see that chunks of the planet have been torn from the surface. It's your job to put these back in place. If Dinosaur Planet explodes, it could affect the entire Lylat system. The only leads I have for you is that you must locate the Queen of the Earthwalker dinosaur tribe. Maybe she can help you further. By the way, your fee of 164 million dollars has been approved. If you succeed, the money will be forwarded to you immediately. Pepper out."

"You heard him, boys. Let's do it! Slippy, get my Arwing prepped for flight immediately! Peppy, I want full connection to the Great Fox while I'm on the ground. ROB, try to get a link to Falco. It'd be great to have him on this one."

"You got it, Fox!" Slippy said, running off into the hangar.

"I'll start on it immediately." Peppy replied, spinning his chair around towards the console.

"AFFIRMATIVE." ROB droned.

…..

"Great flying, Fox. For a minute there I thought you weren't going to make it." Pepper joked over the communicator.

"Very funny, sir." Fox said, looking around the wet, tropical landscape of Thorntail Hollow. "What about a weapon?"

"No weapons. This is a peaceful mission; we have no need to go to war with these people."

"Seems a little funny to me, sending a mercenary as a dove." Fox said underneath his breath.

"Try using your head; this mission requires a different tactic."

"Alright, sir. Fox out."

_First things first: Find a weapon,_ Fox thought, smirking. He picked up a thick tree branch and swung it around. Heavy enough to use in a pinch.

_This is what I've been reduced to? _He thought, laughing. He doubted he'd be in a fight anytime soon.

…

Fox stepped onto a large platform, grasping for air. Krazoa Palace was very high up in Sauria's atmosphere, making it difficult for him to breathe. Looking around, he noticed a large blue gem in the center of the platform. He walked over to it. Entrapped inside was a blue vixen.

"Wow…." He paused, looking up at her. Who was she? What was she doing in there? "She's beautiful….."

A Krazoa spirit whisked past him. He wondered aloud how he could get the Krazoa Spirit inside him out.

Fox looked back up at the mysterious cerulean vixen. He felt strange; he began sweating, he could feel his face turning red. She couldn't see him, could she? What was happening to him? What was he doing?

"What am I doing…?" He asked, softly, entranced for what seemed like ages.

"Peppy here! What are you doing, Fox?" Fox jumped up, averting his gaze from the girl. "Release the spirit and get out of there! Peppy out."

"Alright…I'm going." He said, still confused and now embarrassed. Did Peppy see what he was doing? Fox turned around, to head off and set the Krazoa free. But for some odd reason, he found himself glancing back toward her. He snapped back into consciousness and jogged off.

….

Fox endeavored to collect the Krazoa Spirits. He deduced this was because someone was in danger and needed his help, and nothing more. Still, Fox found himself often thinking about the vixen. He didn't know her name, her story, who she was…..anything. All he knew was that something was hurting her, and his job was to save the denizens of Sauria. So he'd do that. And if the Krazoa Spirits were needed to do that, so be it.

Fox's mission continued at a modest pace; though it wasn't an easy one, it certainly wasn't the hardest mission he'd ever been on. He continued to patch together Dinosaur Planet, as well as collecting the four other Krazoa Spirits. And seeing her.

…..

Fox began the long, painful climb up Krazoa Palace for the last time. One more Krazoa Spirit. 164 million dollars. Setting her free. He was anxious, truth be told. Almost nervous. He'd never been very good at talking to women, especially attractive women.

He released the Krazoa Spirit- always an extremely painful endeavor- and immediately gathered all his remaining strength, sprinting up to the blue gem above.

The Krazoa circled around her, screeching and clicking. They acted as vultures do when circling their prey.

"What are you doing?! You said this would save her!" Fox exclaimed, running closer to the gem.

The Krazoa, one by one, entered her body, phasing through the gem and crashing into her repeatedly. Fox knew how painful it was.

"No!" He yelled, pulling out the staff he had found, ready to take them all down.

The last Krazoa entered, her eyes flew open, and in an instant all of the Krazoa were expelled at once. Fox watched as they entered into a large statue of a Krazoa at the north end of the shrine.

"Wake up! Wake up!" Fox screamed, urging the girl.

The gem trembled and shook, the machines holding it did the same. Suddenly, the whole mechanism went up in flames, and the gem shattered.

Fox's instincts kicked in.

_Save her,_ his mind said, his arms flew forward without thought. The staff was still in his hands. He could feel the staff drop down; he did the same. Some sort of weight was bringing it down.

_She'd grabbed it!_

Fox leaned back, pulling the staff upwards. He heard her groan with effort, even though he was doing to bulk of the work. His feet slid underneath him.

And then she grabbed the ledge, and Fox extended his hand. She stared at it for a moment, then looked up at his face.

Her large, cerulean eyes stared up at him. One word came to mind.

_Perfection,_ He thought, almost saying it aloud. And then he realized she was hanging on by a thread, and he was sitting there, gawking at her. He pulled her up in one fell swoop, lifting her onto the platform.

"I am reborn! The mighty Krazoa God! Hahahahahaha!" The voice of hate rained down from the statue, now floating above the two of them.

Fox's mind instantly became knife sharp; his hatred kicked in, leaving a noticeable grimace on his face. Fox's first instinct was to run for the Arwing, which was landed nearby.

He and the vixen were arguing; Fox didn't care about what. He only cared about ripping the Krazoa Statue to shreds, though he didn't make his vengeance known to the girl. He didn't want her to think he was a psycho. Which he was.

When she began using the staff to fire at Andross –which Fox knew was futile- he took to the skies, leaping into the cockpit of his Arwing, and giving chase.

…..

_I am going to kill this bastard. I am going to spread his guts all across the system, _Fox thought, his face serious and angry.

The battle was quick; the only thing Fox remembered was the pained look on Andross's face as he exploded into a million pieces.

Fox actually laughed. He laughed at the death of another person. Not something he would be able to forgive, but it was understandable; this man had caused the destruction of everything he loved. He deserved to die a horrible, explosive death in space. The only regret that Fox had is that the death was quick, just as the battle had been.

…..

Fox slammed his accelerator strip forward, flying through space, and even then he didn't think the old Arwing could outrun the flames. They were so close, lapping at his and Falco's tails. Five more seconds.

Four.

Three. Fox could feel the heat filling his cockpit.

Two. His face itched and burned.

One. The flames stopped, and Fox's Arwing emerged from the wreckage, covered in embers and ash.

….

Fox entered the Great Fox's Hanger, soaked with sweat, covered in dirt and blood. He'd really taken a beating on Sauria; it was just now that he was even realizing it.

As he walked the halls, Fox felt contentment. Andross was finally dead. Dead! He smiled weakly, eager to sleep. There was still the issue of payment to handle, as well as the problem of what to do with Falco. Fox doubted he'd stay, now that the action was over.

"I'm transferring the payment now. Pepper out." The General said as his face blinked off the main communicator.

"Now we can repair the ship!" Slippy yelled, almost a little too loudly. Fox cringed.

"And I can get back with the Star Fox team," Falco said, striding nonchalantly through the titanium door, "Hey guys, you don't mind if I hang with you again, do ya?" Fox pondered this for a moment. Though he didn't seem to be the most loyal as of late, he did show up in the nick of time and help him defeat Andross.

"Sure, it's great to have you back." Fox said, not needing to reassure himself that he made the right choice. He was glad to have another ace back on the team.

"Oh, and Fox, I received a message from Krystal, the vixen you saved."

_So she has a name,_ Fox thought to himself, instantly feeling more awake and alert.

Her beautiful blue eyes appeared on the communication screen. Fox realized how bad the quality of the holograms were now.

"Hi Fox. I really appreciate what you did for me; I'm just so sorry we didn't get much of a chance to talk. I'm left with just one more thing to do…." The hologram said.

_Well? What is it? _

"…And that's to say thank you." Krystal said, gracefully walking through the sliding door. Her slender hips swayed as she walked closer towards him. Fox's face turned a furious shade of red underneath his fur and the dirt; he hoped she couldn't see it.

"Well, uh….okay…I mean sure! No problem!" He stuttered, fumbling over his words, trying not to stare. It was so tempting.

Slippy made some stupid remark. Falco nudged him on the shoulder. ROB began reciting some statistics. Fox didn't really care. Here he was, talking to the hottest girl in the system. What now?

**I know I kind of shrugged off the whole plot of Adventures, but here's my reasoning: People already know what happens, and I'm not here to retell that story. I'm more interested in what happens after Adventures and before Assault. I hope all can be forgiven, or even that it doesn't both anybody. **

**-ThatWinchieGuy**


	3. Peculiar

The mission on Sauria had proven to be a huge success; Star Fox had funds, the ace pilot had come back to the team, and a new pilot had joined the team. All in all, the risk seemed worth the reward.

Fox had no trouble getting Krystal to stay; she'd practically begged him to. That wasn't something he was expecting. Still, she seemed….off. Like she wasn't behaving as she normally did. Fox wasn't sure if he could judge her so quickly, seeing as he'd only known her for a few days. Something just seemed to be bothering her. Krystal often would stare off into some unknown corner, as if she was waiting for something to appear from it's dark recesses. She'd stay this way for a few moments, her body still, and then she'd jerk –literally, jerk- her body back into consciousness.

And she walked in her sleep. Fox had seen it firsthand, during his first night back on the Great Fox. He got up early, as he usually did, and headed into the control room to prepare for the warp back to Corneria; or rather, to see if the ship even had enough strength to do so. The old dreadnaught might not have been able to take one last jump before being refitted. After deciding that the hull's integrity was strong enough to get them home in one piece, Fox began calculating how much the updates would cost. He wouldn't finish this until later that day, because a few moment after he had started, Krystal came into the control room.

Her deep blue eyes were closed, and her balance was weak. She wobbled slightly as she strode forward, almost at a jog. Fox stayed perfectly still.

"Oon teo hij tik lah jak!" she said, almost yelling. She was speaking some ancient language that resembled Dino, but it wasn't that. Perhaps a dialect?

"Hay nif den gae too loy jak!" She yelled again. Fox span is chair around to see what she was doing. She was reaching around her back for her staff, which, presumably, was back in her quarters. Suddenly, she began swinging her arms violently, narrowly flying past the many consoles of the room.

_What's wrong with her?! _Fox's brain screamed. Immediately, she stopped, standing in the middle of the room, feet away from Fox. Her angry face turned into a face of surprise, like she'd seen him. Then she ran immediately back into her room, with her eyes closed the entire time.

…

Fox was in the kitchen, not sure if he should bring the incident up to her. Maybe that was a bit personal. Then again, he'd technically known her the longest out of everyone on the ship, and if anybody WAS going to bring it up, it should be him. Technically.

Krystal came through the sliding titanium doors; Peppy had mysteriously disappeared. It was just him and her, alone.

She looked like she hadn't slept in days; brown lines formed underneath the eyes that seemed to control Fox's every thought. Everything seemed to have a blue tint to it these days.

He wondered if now was the time.

"Hey Krystal." He said, trying not to pay too much attention to her. He knew if he did, he'd immediately bumble over himself.

"Morning, Fox." She groaned.

Fox decided the subtle, innocent approach might work better.

"Sleep well?" he asked, staring down at the eggs Peppy had prepared. He wasn't the best cook in the system, but it was edible, and Fox was grateful for that; especially after eating nothing but PukPuk eggs and various fungus while on the surface of Sauria.

"Not very. But what can you do?" She shrugged, glancing off the subtle approach's sword.

_Now we go for the direct one,_ Fox thought.

"I think I may know why." He said, finally paying her some attention.

"What?" Krystal asked, genuinely confused.

He completely blew off her question, and asked instead, "What language do you speak when you dream?"

"I'm sorry?"

"What's the first language you ever learned to speak?"

"Cerinian," Her thoughts seemed to linger on that word, "Why?"

Fox had no idea where this Cerinia was. That would explain her strange- but Fox had to admit, rather sexy- attire.

"I've never heard of a Cerinia."

She looked away, jerking her head towards the floor. Clearly he had upset her somehow.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to…" Fox said.

"It's not your fault," she sighed, her eyes firmly fixed on the grooves in the metal ground, "I'm going to go to the gym."

She got up and walked away, leaving her half eaten breakfast on the table. Fox watched as she slid out the door.

"What's your story….?" He said quietly underneath his breath.

…

Fox returned to his calculations after breakfast, determining that after all the upgrades to the Great Fox and Arwings, plus each member's individual cut, the Star Fox team's treasury would contain a solid 3 million dollars.

_There goes that,_ Fox thought as he circled the three on the screen in front of him. Then again, he'd been on jobs that didn't even pay that much before.

Perhaps he could get some small jobs out of the way when the repairs were complete.

Now, however, was time to warp.

…..

"Falco!" Fox yelled, slamming his balled fist onto the bird's door. No answer.

"Falco! Come on!" Nothing.

"Falco?"

Silence.

Fox slid the master keycard into the lock and opened the door.

Falco lay there, passed out on the floor, sleeping in a pile of whiskey bottles.

"The hell?" Fox said, stepping his way towards Falco as if he were in a minefield.

"Hur- Wha?" Falco said, sitting up in a flash.

"Oh, so this is what you'll be spending your cut on." Fox joked, extending a hand to his friend, who kindly refused it.

"Jus do whatever ya need to do, I'll be in here."

"Alright, just grab onto something, we'll be warping in about an hour."

"Damn, tha's gonna hurt."


	4. Hellfire Rains

Corneria blinked into view within minutes after warping. The dreadnaught shuddered and trembled like a naked person in the cold. Fox stood in the control room, looking out over the cloudy planet. Looking at his homeworld always gave him a sense of pride; that his family had protected it from all dangers, allowing it to thrive into the metropolis it was today.

Fox's encounters with Krystal lately troubled him. He couldn't have a mentally unstable teammate on missions; it would jeopardize them all (Quite ironic, really.). Right now, Fox was only focused on getting the team back to full combat capabilities. Whatever he had to do to achieve this would be done. Simple.

Falco, though hungover, was fine, and he'd be ready should a threat strike. Slippy wasn't a good pilot, but he could handle himself. Fox was always ready, and Peppy could still help in combat as well. All that was left was Krystal.

What WAS wrong with her? Nobody sleep walks like that. And where was Cerinia? What was Cerinia? Fox tried to adapt his own life to the situation. He'd never walked while he slept, but he had stared off into nothing like that before.

After he lost his father.

Fox shook his head, pushing away the pain that still tried to pry it's way into his brain.

Maybe she'd lost somebody as well? It might be worth it to ask her. No, scratch that, he HAD to ask her, lest he put the whole team in danger.

…

Fox sought her out on his own initiative. She hadn't lied; she was in the gym. Or rather, what resembled a gym. She was stretching near the back wall, looking like she had just run. Fox couldn't help but notice the gentle curve of her leg. He shook this off as well; they were teammates, nothing more.

Instead of confronting her directly, Fox again took the subtle approach. He began his normal workout, and waited to see if she would come to him first. She didn't. After about half an hour, Fox switched tactics. Dealing with her was like being in a dogfight. Always shifting, always watching.

"Hey Krystal, how's it going? You sure took off in a hurry there." Perhaps not his best choice of words ever.

"Yeah," she began," I wasn't hungry."

Fox paused for a moment and re-thought his words.

"So you said you were from Cerinia…what's it like?" Fox asked, sitting down next to the machine she was using.

"Beautiful…" she replied, her description again trailing off into the halls and away from them.

Something was definitely wrong.

"Do you….miss it?"

"Constantly." She grunted, and her effort increased. Anger.

"Is something wrong?" Fox asked, still sitting nearby.

"No." Why did she seem so cold?

"You're lying."

"I am not."

"Yes, you are."

"Fox listen, you're a nice guy, but right now, I really just need to be left alone. I promise you, all in good time, you'll have your answers; but right now, just go away, please." She pleaded, her face turning red.

"Something happened," he said, shifting closer to her, "you lost someone."

It was a long shot. A very, VERY long shot.

But it hit right between her eyes.

She stepped off the machine, holding her head as if it were about to burst. She stumbled around the room, with Fox watching intently.

"Orh Don…All those people….."

"Krystal….what happened to you?"

She hobbled through the gym, still holding her head and looking directly at the floor.

"Why? Why!?"

"Gordah…."

The mixture of languages confused Fox; he wasn't really sure what was going on, or how to help her. He just watched as Krystal fell completely apart in front of him.

"Dammit!" she screamed, falling to the floor, a defeated mass of body. Fox stood up and walked over to her, kneeling beside her. He placed a hand on her back. The fur was so soft…he could feel it for ages and be satisfied. Now wasn't the time for that.

"Come on, let's get you to your room."

….

Krystal fell into the bunk on her stomach, her face buried into the pillow.

"Krystal, I need you to tell me what happened."

"I can't….." she moaned.

Fox decided to vent with her.

"Two years ago, I sat in the cockpit of my Arwing, watching as lasers flew all around me, as enemy fighters flooded my vision. I heard my father's voice. 'Fox, you need to leave' he said to which I protested. He then commanded me, and vanished forever into the void of space."

"I'm sorry," she said, tears streaming out of the sides of her face, "I wasn't aware."

"Something similar happened to you. I know it."

She sat up, zoning out and looking out the window.

"Cerinia was destroyed. The planet fell to an invading army. The cities burned, the underworld erupted from the ground, hellfire rained down. People died, blood was sprayed into the dirt streets. As far as I know, I'm the last survivor."

Fox's face turned solemn and dark. The fire seemed to burn inside the room. Her face reflected all of those lost.

"I…." Fox didn't really know how to respond. Fortunately, he didn't have to. Krystal continued on.

"Children dropped from buildings, smashing into the ground. The elderly were chopped down in the streets. Mothers clung to their children. Do you see why I am not okay? Do you see why I will not be okay for a long time to come?"

Tears began to flow from Fox's eyes, and Krystal began weeping again. The two of them stayed this way for two hours, crying, sitting there, not interacting.

And then Krystal laid her head down on Fox's shoulder.

She was unbelievably cold; her teeth chattered and her body shivered. Why did people do this to each other? Look at what this caused. Fox thought he had troubles. Krystal had experienced what he had thousands of times over. It was a miracle she was alive, and an even greater miracle that she hadn't gone completely insane.

"Thank you," she muttered through her long sobs.


	5. A Change in Pace

**I wanted to clear some things up in response to a guest review. First off, the canon ending of Star Fox 64 is part of this fic. James McCloud's death, however, I altered so that it's a more traumatizing experience for Fox, which I showed in the chapter EXPOSITION. Fox , clearly, was present at James' death in this fic, which I think will compel the story further. I hope that gives more insight. **

**-ThatWinchieGuy**

Fox dragged the two small suitcases from his room and led them down the hall. He'd never carried many possessions on him when he was traveling; most of his valuables were kept at the McCloud Manor, which was probably where he was going to head now. The ship's repairs and upgrades would take at least two months, probably more like four or five. Fox was fine with this; he needed a break after the events on Sauria and the Lylat Wars.

He wasn't sure what the rest of the team would do. Falco no doubt would spend most of the time hammered; Slippy would likely help with the repairs. Peppy, Fox supposed, could stay in the McCloud Manor if he wanted to; it was the least Fox could do for him. What would Krystal do? She'd never been to Corneria, not to his knowledge anyways.

Fox noticed her in the hallway, carrying her one satchel from Cerinia.

"So," he began, setting his two suitcases down, "How will you be spending you break time?"

"Probably exploring….I've always loved new places."

Fox wondered if he should ask his next thought. He did.

"So…do you have anywhere to stay? Like…uh…people you know?"

"I don't. I was going to find a hotel."

_Go in for the kill….._

"That's nonsense! I've got a house, the McCloud Manor, up in the northern outskirts of the city. You can come stay there, free of charge. Consider it a welcoming gift from the team."

_Very smooth, McCloud. No bumbling._

"I don't know…I mean I don't want to get in the way…" she said nervously.

"Krystal, it's not a big deal. Plus, most of the funds are going towards the ship, so I'm not sure how nice of a hotel you'd get, truth be told."

He wasn't lying.

"Still, I feel like I'd be a bother…"

"Falco's staying there too, so if I can handle him, I'm pretty sure we can handle you too." Fox joked.

Krystal thought for a moment, looking at the titanium floor of the hall.

"Alright, I'll take you up on your offer. I suppose a McCloud's home is the best I can do, anyways." She said in false disgust.

_Is she doing what I think she's doing? _Fox thought.

"Is that so? Perhaps I'll have to rescind my request, then." He replied, beginning to storm off in falsified anger.

Krystal laughed.

…

Once again, Fox felt his leadership instincts kick in when Krystal caught her first glimpse of the Cornerian Downtown area. She had absolutely no clue what was going on. Her face was filled with confusion and fright. Fox found it odd when she began shifting slowly closer to him while the team walked down the street. Just teammates, that's all they were.

"Fascinating, isn't it?" Fox said, looking down at her. She was a few inches shorter than him; probably about 5'5''.

"Scary is what it is. How do you get your buildings so high up?"

"We use cranes. And geometry."

"What the heck is a geometry?" she asked.

"Geometry is the study of shapes. We can use that to figure out how a building will look and whether or not it will stand."

"Oh, on Cerinia we called that Regahdon."

"Interesting…" Fox's voice trailed off. He needed rest.

"Where are we going?" Krystal asked.

"We're going to the Star Fox Headquarters, only a few minutes away."

"Fox," he heard. His name didn't come from Krystal's mouth. It came from Peppy's, not far away from him.

"Excuse me a moment," Fox said, walking away from Krystal and over to Peppy.

"Yeah?"

"I think it would be best for the team to head back into the Academy for a while, perhaps until the repairs are done, or even longer." Peppy said.

"What? Why?" Fox asked, genuinely confused. He thought his skills were nigh perfect.

"Just as a precaution, plus, it will give you all something to do. Also, I'm not so sure Krystal knows how to fly an Arwing."

Fox hadn't thought about that before. How stupid of him! Still, Fox despised the idea of going back to school. He'd hated it there as a kid, and he was positive he would hate it there as a 19 year old even more. Peppy did have a point though. Fox felt a bit rusty in the fight against Andross; he just deduced that this was due to the age of his Arwing. Perhaps that wasn't the case.

"She probably doesn't." Fox said finally.

"I'm going to go there now and enter you all in. For eight months."

_EIGHT MONTHS?! _Fox's head screamed.

"Peppy, let's not get hasty here. Four months, tops."

"Eight months. I'm not faltering on this." Peppy's voice was calm and collected.

Despite being the official leader of Star Fox, Fox had never been led astray by Peppy's advice. He felt like he HAD to listen to him.

"Grr….Fine." Fox said, and there was no further discussion on the matter.

…..

Fox slipped out of his bed after a deep sleep. He had a week to himself before classes started; most of which he doubted he would be going to anyways. Fox picked up the class list from his nightstand.

_Cornerian Air Academy_

_Class List for Fox McCloud_

_Survival_

_Maneuvers_

_Introduction to Leadership (INTRODUCTION?! Are you kidding me?!)_

_Fighter Composition_

_Study on G-Diffuser Systems_

It wasn't nearly as bad as his first stint in college, but still. Fox could skate through these classes. And none of it had to deal with combat! He could probably pass the final for Maneuvers Class without even attending a single lecture. The same could be said for Falco, who was also entered in the class.

It was then that Fox realized he had his own little dormitory, consisting of Falco, himself, and Krystal all in the same house. Maybe he'd enjoy himself this time around.

Neither of his roommates were awake yet, something Fox was a bit grateful for. He wanted to spend at least one day of his week off alone.

That day wouldn't be today, as right when he thought this, Krystal came walking into the living room that was adjoined with the kitchen where Fox currently was.

"So what's on the schedule for today?" Krystal asked cheerfully. She was clearly a morning person; Fox was not.

"I'm not sure," he replied, "what do you wanna do?"

"Well, like I said before, I was hoping to explore the city a bit….care to join me?" Why was she so good at this?

"I….uhm….sure. Why not?"


	6. Exploration

Fox wasn't sure how he should dress. Or look. Or act. Or smell. Or feel. Feel?

He'd never really done this before; he'd only traveled around the city when he needed to. He knew where everything was, he knew where he could eat or sleep or shop, but he didn't KNOW the city. He didn't truly know the place he called home. Fox didn't know anything.

He didn't know what love was, no matter how much he tried to convince himself he'd experienced it. He didn't know who he was, he didn't know why he was still here after his father and mother had gone before him, he didn't know why he felt so angry all the time, and he didn't know why he hated the universe.

Fox paused for a moment, looking around his room. What was he? Who was he? Where was he? Why was he alive? Why did he breathe and talk and walk? Did he deserve it all?

The strength of the moment hit him, sending him limping over to his bed. He lay down, not sure if he ever wanted to get up. Why was this happening now; of all times for these thoughts to come to him? Krystal would be ready to leave soon, and that meant he had to be ready. But he just lay there, shirtless, flat on his back on the plush mattress.

"Fox? Are you ready?" Krystal said, her soft cerulean paw knocking gently on his door.

"I'm going to need a few minutes….I'll meet you downstairs in ten."

Ten minutes was not the amount of time he would have liked to have, but it was what he'd been given.

…..

Fox dressed with a bit more flair than he normally would, which is to say, he wore something other than green cargo pants. A black jacket covered his olive green business shirt; black pants fell over his legs. No tie sat around his neck. The day was young, the summer sun only beginning to beat down the skyscrapers of civilization. Fox stepped into the living room, noticing Krystal sitting down on the couch. She stood and faced him.

"Ready now, ma'am?" She joked, obviously mocking the less than desirable time it took him to prepare.

Fox didn't respond; he didn't even laugh. He just stared, trying to keep his lower jaw connected to his upper.

Krystal looked stunning; a red, form fitting dress wrapped up her slender form. The curve of her hip was highly noticeable, her fur shone in contrast to the dress's color. Her eyes glimmered in defiance.

Krystal began to blush, which immediately sent him spiraling back into reality.

_What now?_ He thought.

"You….wow. I mean , you uhm….look nice." He muttered. They were just teammates. But she was beautiful; there was no evil in complimenting your teammate on her….assets.

Krystal kept calm.

"You shape up well, don't you?" she said, passing by him on her way towards the door. She smelled of rain.

"I suppose I do," he said, opening the door for her.

…

"So….where to first?" Krystal asked, looking up at the skyscrapers above them; so out of place.

"Well, it's still pretty early, so I'm not sure…how about I show you around the Academy? Since you'll be spending a few months there and all…."

"Sounds lovely," she said, inching closer to him.

The idea of being just teammates just turned Fox off at this point. Still, he stuck to it, staying close to her, but only at a comfortable distance. Krystal frowned slightly, a bit confused. He wanted to let her come close, but he just couldn't. Perhaps there was a deeper meaning to this "just teammates" mentality?

The two of them walked through the ornate gate of the Academy, stepping onto the red and brown tiles of the main plaza. In it's center, directly in front of them, a large fountain was erected, formed by marble. Decorative benches surrounded the central pool.

"Wow…." Krystal gasped, taking in the scenery.

Fox just chuckled, watching her draw closer to the fountain, circling around the plaza. Nobody was out this early.

The day passed by quickly for Fox; something that hadn't happened in a long time. He enjoyed seeing the looks of shock and amazement on Krystal's face after arriving at each new destination. At 1 in the morning, Fox and Krystal came crashing through the door of the McCloud Manor, laughing maniacally. It didn't seem like Falco was up; he'd probably stayed in bed all day anyways.

The two of them barged their way into the living room, pushing each other and snickering. Krystal pushed Fox onto the couch and jumped on top of him. Fox lay there helpless.

"Stop, stop! Enough!" he said, gasping for air through each laugh.

It was almost like they were dating.

Which they weren't.

And probably wouldn't.

And couldn't.

And shouldn't.

"I had a great time today, Fox," she said, her voice quieting.

_Uh oh, not good. Not good at all. Well, I mean, fantastic, but not good. No. Yes? _

Fox's thoughts were sporadic; he began to fumble over his words, his palms sweating uncontrollably.

"Uhm….I did…too?"

Krystal was still laying on top of him. So soft…..

"Well, it's not over yet is it?" she said matter-of-factly.

"I….uh….don't know?"

_You don't know? What was THAT?!_

Krystal began to lean in closer. The sweet scent of rain filled his nostrils.

_No, you can't! You crazy, horny bastard you can't!_

Fox jerked away.

"I'm….sorry…I…uhm…uhhh… I can't, we can't do…that." Fox writhed underneath her.

"What?" she asked.

_But you could….she's right there…._

"We're teammates….I don't know if…..don't take this the wrong way, it's just…" he stumbled, attempting not to lose her completely.

"I know what you're thinking," she said dryly, smiling.

Fox blushed and asked, "Wh-what?"

Krystal got up and walked away, down the hallway into her room, leaving him there.

"What?" he asked again out loud, to no one in particular.

…..

That night Fox dreamt of Fara. Of how much he'd messed everything up with her. Of how much he messed up his entire life.

He didn't miss Fara, not in the slightest. And he knew she didn't miss him either. She actually was probably happy, hiding away off somewhere with some unknown love. A love that wasn't him. He'd felt for her, certainly, but was it enough to call it love? Was he too young and stupid to love? The real question that stuck in his head was this:

_Do I want to love?_


	7. Back to School

Fox wanted to love. He did, truly. It wasn't a matter of determining whether or not he wanted to love, but whether or not he could love. Life hadn't been kind to Fox; this much was known to him. This showed in everything he did; the cold, systematic way he handled problems, the anger that visibly showed in him when he heard the name 'Andross'. There just wasn't the passion anymore….only the anger. Fox didn't like living. How, then, could he like someone else? How could he like anything at all?

What had made him this way? When did he begin hating the universe? Why did he hate? Why couldn't he love? Who made him this way?

Where did this all begin?

Perhaps with his mother…it was then that he got his first sense of how real life could be. Then his father, when the thing he cared most for- protected with all his being- died. Maybe he felt betrayed. Who had betrayed him? Not his father, not anybody. He'd messed it up, and him alone. Nobody could have saved James but him.

Maybe his relationships made it impossible for him to fully accept another person. Those were absolute catastrophes; Fox hardly even wanted to talk to women for months after them. Whenever he did, he came off as a cold, hard, sexist asshole. People didn't really like Fox too much.

But why did she seem to like him? And secondly, why did he seem to feel differently about her than everyone else? Fox wouldn't say he liked her, not yet at least. But he didn't hate her, and that was a start.

….

Classes started today. Fox wasn't nervous, not in the least. He was annoyed. He knew that the second he walked through those old iron gates that all the freshmen would be swarming around him, asking him for autographs and advice. And, time and time again, he'd have to respond with, "I'm not signing anything right now. Have a good one," with a false smile slapped across his face. It was like he was wearing a mask. There was nothing Fox hated more than publicity.

He walked to the Academy alone, despite Krystal's requests to go with him. He didn't want her exposed to all the attention so soon; she actually had to focus in her classes. He did, however, want Falco to come with him. Falco was always an attention whore, soaking in the peoples' lust for the famous. He was like a shield against paparazzi.

Fox's fears came true when he and the blue avian trudged into the plaza, now swarming with other students of the Academy, grasping at the chance to see the famous Star Fox team. A crowd came over them, throwing itself on top of them, smothering them. Falco was loving it, pushing people playfully off him, smiling and waving at people. Fox just pushed forward through what seemed like an endless throng.

Then came the reporters. Reporters!

The cameras surrounded Fox, who was now completely separated from Falco.

"Fox, what was the civil war on Sauria like?'

"Mr. McCloud, what are your thoughts on the the laws being negotiated right now?"

"Fox, are you officially dating the mysterious blue vixen?"

_I'M SORRY?!_

Fox's head turned on a swivel, sending his body with it. He pushed his way towards the reporter asking the absurd question. It was really the only thing he wanted to clear up.

"We're only teammates, we're not dating, and we probably never will." He yelled into the microphone before shoving his way towards his first class.

….

All of Fox's classes were, as he suspected, not necessary. He spent all day thinking not about G-Diffusers and wilderness survival, but of the reporter's question. Did people really think they were dating? And who even knew about Krystal? They hadn't run into a single person when they had hung out a few days ago.

Fox was home watching the news, looking for other clues concerning the new rumor.

"Hey, what're you watching?" Krystal said, walking into the living room.

"Nothing important," Fox responded, "why?"

"So…you're free?"

"I think so."

"You want to do something?"

_Oh no….I can't put myself through that again. I'm not ready for this…._

"Sure, what did you have in mind?" Fox asked, mentally punching himself in the nose.

"I don't know, what do you want to do?"

"I'm kind of tired, so…"

"Oh…poor thing," Krystal said, sitting down on the couch, " that's fine, we can just stay here if you want."

_Do I want to? Yes? No? Both?!_

"Uhm…sure, I guess."

Fox didn't like where she'd placed herself on the couch. Well, his subconscious liked it, but the forefront of his mind didn't. She was a bit too close for mentally distressed Fox. For some reason though, he didn't question it or complain.

"So…." Krystal began awkwardly.

"So…." Fox said.

"Rumor has it we're Corneria's newest couple." She said, not looking at him, but blushing.

Fox didn't avert his gaze from the TV and said, "Yeah."

"How do you feel about that?"

"What do you mean?"

"I mean…..do you care? Like…are we?" Krystal asked.

_Oh please yes yes yes! A thousand times yes!_

"Again, we're just teammates….it's not that I don't think you're a great girl, just….I can't have favorites on the team. I know you understand." Fox said.

_Dammit!_

"Yeah…I get it." She seemed upset.

The next few moments were the most awkward of Fox's life; the two of them were clutching at straws to put the conversation back on course.

"How-"

"So-" Both of them began saying something at the same time.

"I'm sorry, go on." Fox said.

"No… it's stupid."

"No, really, go ahead."

"It's fine." Krystal responded.

Both of their feet shifted nervously on the floor. Fox adjusted himself on the couch. Krystal bit her lower lip.

"How was your day?" Fox asked, breaking the tension.

"Fine, and yours?"

"Alright, I guess."

More silence.

…..


	8. Telepath

School dragged on. Fox hated every second of it; he was wasting his time. As much as he could see, the only reason that they were back in the Academy was for Krystal's own good. Peppy had been right; she'd never flown in a combat scenario, despite once being a scout in the Cerinian military. Fox was glad that Peppy had enrolled them; had he not, Krystal probably would've been dead by now.

The rest of the team, however, was not as content as Fox was. Falco constantly missed classes, and was always threatened to be kicked out of his classes by his professors. He, quite frankly, was sick of this charade.

"Fox, what gives? Why am I still here, man?" Falco said to Fox, late at night, when nobody was around.

"Still where? What?"

"You and I both know that I don't need this shit."

"Peppy put us here so that's where…."Fox began, only to be cut off.

"Tell me I'm wrong, Fox. Tell me that Falco Lombardi, ace pilot of the Star Fox team, needs to stay in a school for amateurs. Tell me!"

"Falco, listen I…"

"You only care about your damn self."

"That's not true. I care about all the members of Star Fox, and I agree with Peppy on this one."

"Oh wait, I'm sorry. You only care about yourself and Krystal. Not your best friend since grade school, but some random refugee that you can barely even talk to without pissing yourself."

Fox and Falco were both standing, inches away from one another.

"Don't talk about her like that." Fox became instantly angry.

"I'll do whatever the hell I want. You don't own me."

"Fine, but leave her out of this," Fox said, snarling, as he walked away, eager to calm his nerves.

He ran into Krystal in the hallway, and immediately put on a straight face, concealing his frustration. He, too, was growing tired of being treated like an amateur by his professors. He didn't need this either.

"Something wrong?" she asked, changing directions so that she could follow him.

"No, everything's fine." There was no way she could have heard them, right?

"Everything's not alright. What's wrong?"

"What are you talking about? Nothing's wrong, really." Fox said, already feeling himself breaking into a sweat.

"Are you sure?" she said, flashing him a sly smile. Did she know?

_Well, I've already lied. Deny, deny, deny, Fox. _

"Yeah, it's fine."

Her sly smile turned quickly into an angry grimace as Krystal stepped closer to Fox. She brought her mouth up to Fox's ear and whispered,

"Liar."

And then she walked away.

How did she always know everything?

…..

Falco was expelled from his classes; Fox assumed this was planned by Falco. Fox really wasn't angry, just disappointed. In a way, Falco was like his older brother. His drunk, cocky, unsentimental older brother, but his older brother nonetheless. And Fox and Falco always did act like each other's sibling; they often fought over pointless matters purely to see who was better. And, in a short time, they made up, clean and simple. Their argument the other night had been no different, now that Falco had denied Fox's wishes.

Krystal's comment bit at Fox's mind like a savage beast. He knew he had been lying, and he should at least apologize for that. But how did she always know what was going on? It was as if she had access to his mind. And, to Fox, there seemed to be no way to figure out how she was so omniscient. But she absolutely was this way; she always knew how Fox felt, where he was, what he was thinking. It was beginning to scare him. How?

Then the dreams came. Fox began dreaming of Krystal every night; unpleasant dreams. He would see her face, nothing else. Watching him. Judging him. As if she were waiting for him to do something. But he couldn't. He had no control over his body. This judgment would go on for hours, days, weeks, and then, finally, she would frown, and he would feel himself falling. The same dream, each night, for two weeks.

Fox stayed away from Krystal; she definitely had something to do with this, and whatever she was doing, Fox wanted no part of. He didn't want to talk to Krystal at all. He wanted her to stay away. Which, of course, she didn't. Nothing ever went according to plan for Fox.

She seemed caring enough, but Fox wasn't buying it. He engaged in the shortest conversations possible with her, he didn't let Krystal touch him, breathe on him; no physical contact whatsoever.

But one night, she finally got her way, trapping him in the ornate living room of the McCloud Manor.

"Fox, you need to sleep."

"No, I'm fine." Fox said, not looking at her.

"Fox, I…."

"No." He said, his voice becoming louder.

"What is it…." Krystal began, moving towards him. Fox squirmed and moved backwards.

"Go away! Get out of my head, go away! Go away!" Fox said, standing up and jumping the opposite direction.

"I want to tell you something. Serious. This is very important, do you understand?" Her tone was suddenly professional, stern.

"O-okay, but quickly."

"The people of Cerinia are telepathic. They can read the minds of those around them. They can transmit feelings, visions, and dreams to other sentient beings. This is why you've been dreaming of me, this is why I know your every thought, and this is why I always know where you are. I can read your mind, as well as everybody else's mind."

Fox looked at her, slightly disgusted. She knew everything he thought? EVERYTHING?

"I know this is a lot to handle, Fox, So I'll let you stay here and decipher it yourself."

"Wha….What?!"

Krystal was already walking through to door, but leaned back in and said, "Fara never loved you. And you never loved her," and then shut the door, disappearing from sight.

"Don't you…" Fox began shouting, but it was pointless. Krystal was gone. He fell onto the couch, contemplating what she'd said. He'd never loved Fara? What did that have to do with ANY of this?

For the first night in 14 days, Fox slept well.

**Hey guys, sorry about the longer wait. In response to a fan review on **_**Star Fox: My Life is Yours,**_** I've begun a long, arduous process that I believe will allow me to better organize my writing. My last fic was all over the place, it had no focus to it. There were about 3 stories going on at the same time, with smaller stories popping in and out. With this fic, I want there to be maybe two main stories, which have probably already been pointed out via my work. Updates from now on may take longer to write (this is because I will be going gradually further into detail), but will be more focused in on the main idea of the fic, which you can find in the context of the chapter **_**Exposition. **_**I look forward to your reviews on this newer style, and I hope you enjoyed the chapter. **

**-ThatWinchieGuy **


	9. Awkward Silence

Things slowly returned to normal in the McCloud Manor; Falco was always plowed, Peppy made his occasional visits. But Fox and Krystal were everything but normal. Fox was always deep in thought; nobody but Krystal could understand or know what it was he wondered about. Perhaps the strangest part to Krystal was what the vulpine thought about her. Sometimes, rage would boil up, other times, deep, caring emotion. She wondered if he was bipolar at times. The two of them rarely spoke, and when they did, it was only to exchange courtesies. Even if she could read his mind, she was, still, a person, and deserved to be treated as such.

The rest of the household stayed out of their business. Nobody really had any clue what was going on with either of them, what made them so stony-faced and melancholy all the time. Falco just continued chugging, and Peppy acted as if nothing was wrong. But Krystal knew that they understood something was up. It was almost like Fox was broken, incapable of use. Krystal "overheard" Peppy's thoughts once, as he recalled how much Fox's condition reminded him of how Fox acted after his father had died. Quiet. Emotionless. Confused.

….

School was nearing it's end for the team; a welcomed end. They could finally go back to the skies and make money again; something Fox relished, for the team's treasury again ran low. He had taken to traveling to the Great Fox each day, watching it's progress. The old dreadnaught had completely transformed; it's hull plated with solid metal, cannon barrels shining in the sun. A virtual fortress. The upgrades would make Fox's job much easier, but he wouldn't settle for that. He wanted more. He wanted to take on bigger jobs; destroy whole fleets, subdue entire armies. It was possible; perhaps not plausible, but definitely possible.

Then came the day when Krystal followed him there, not to get a look at the ship, but to search for a glimpse into the soul of Fox McCloud.

He entered the naval complex like he would on any other day, and parked near the ship's hangar like he would on any other day. Krystal followed suit. Fox trudged up the large ramp leading to the ship's undercarriage, which was now a large, modernized hangar housing four Arwings, each updated due to Slippy's tinkering. The result of this testing was the Arwing 3; a light, swift, and combat ready machine. Fox ran his hand over the smooth, blue and gray surface of the fighter. No dimples, no bullet holes or burn marks. Pure perfection. Clean. New.

"Fox?" he heard a voice, quiet and nervous. Fox turned his head to face the voice, which had come from Krystal, now standing in the opening of the hangar, not far from him.

"Yes? What is it?" He said, trying to sound professional, but breaking inside. He really didn't want to talk to her alone right now.

How to begin?

"What are you doing here?"

"I'm looking over the upgrades first-hand. Seems like my work on Sauria was worth it." He said, looking up to the ceiling.

"Fox…." She began.

"Yes?"

"Why do you do this to yourself?" she asked, not talking about to upgrades or his job.

"What do you mean?"

"Why do you think this way, like you're some mess of a person? Why do you hate yourself, why do you not trust anybody, why do you hate me, life, everything?"

"I…" Fox said, clutching for answers.

"You don't know? You don't understand?" Krystal said, placing her hand over his on the smooth surface of the Arwing. Fox pulled away, turning his back to her, when Krystal read a peculiar set of memories that flashed in his head like a lightning bolt.

First was the memory of his father's death; a memory Krystal had seen before. Second was when Fox was told his mother was gone and wouldn't be coming back. And third was a memory of Fara, yelling and screaming, then slamming a door in Fox's face.

"I know. I know why you hate everything."

"You don't know anything!" Fox yelled, his face turning a dark shade of red, almost purple.

"You hate everything because everything you loved left you. You don't want to trust anybody because you think they'll leave too." She said, stepping up to him, taking his hands in hers.

Fox began crying, and turned away. He hated crying.

"Shit…" he said, at a loss for words, staring at the floor.

"Fox….you can open up. You can accept others. You have to, because if you don't you see what you become. Sad, lonely, and depressed. You need people. You need somebody to love."

Fox let go of her hands and walked away, not saying another word.

….


	10. Lying to a Telepath

**Been getting a lot of questions about who Fara is exactly. Just for those wondering, Fara Phoenix was a character in the Star Fox comics that came out during the 90's, and she's Fox's main romantic interest in the comics. They obviously didn't date forever since Fara isn't featured or even seen in Star Fox 64. Since their breakup is never mentioned, I decided to make it very traumatic for already-traumatized Fox. Hope that clears things up. **

**-ThatWinchieGuy**

Could it really be as simple as that? Was he just scared to love, to accept another person into his twisted, war-filled life? It seemed reasonable. Still, Fox never thought about being scared to show his feelings for someone; he often made up another excuse to himself.

_No, they're not a good person, really. They're just pretending._

_No, I'll mess it up. They'll leave like Fara did. _

Never once did he think that he'd lose someone again. Perhaps she was right.

But that would mean she was contradicting her earlier hypothesis. If Fox hadn't ever loved Fara, why did the memory of her leaving that night appear when Krystal mentioned losing someone he cared about? There was no logical explanation; Krystal had been wrong. She could, possibly, be wrong about this as well.

Unless she had lied. But why would she lie about such a thing, knowing that it gnawed at Fox like a piranha in tropical waters? Was she trying to hurt him, to lead him astray? What did she want?

"It's not fair," Fox said, turning over in bed, "I can't read minds like some psychic freak. She has the edge. I'm practically her toy, her puppet, lost to her control. She can do whatever she wants."

Fox stood up and padded out onto the balcony outside the living room. The Cornerian skyline was gorgeous, especially lit up late on a Saturday night. The night life was in full swing; neon lights shone from the windows of stores, people poured into clubs and bars, eager to quench their thirst. It was something Fox had never done, drinking. He could soon, with his 21st birthday approaching, but he doubted he would. Or, at least, he doubted that he would go out drinking on his own accord. No doubt Falco would drag him out to the bars the second he became legal. He knew Falco had waited quite some time to drink with him, to show how much stronger his liver was that Fox's. It was a trophy Fox decided to give the avian, something to be proud of, however absurd and slightly disgusting that trophy was.

Fox hadn't really ever looked out over the city at night before; he was always too caught up in work or school to do anything but sleep when he was given the chance. He liked doing this. He could get used to this. Nobody was around to bother him,, to remind him of how real life had become in just a short 4 years, to tell him what to do, where to go, how to get there. He was himself. He could be honest here. He could think.

And, right as he thought this, his solitude was shattered, hearing a familiar voice that seemed to have a knack for shattering solitude.

"So I'm a freak now? Is that it?"

Fox turned around, slightly startled by her voice.

"What?" he said innocently, as if lying to a telepath would help.

"Stubborn bastard…..you know I can read your mind, and yet you still lie to me?" Krystal was stepping up to him, sizing him up. "I can't believe this."

_I can't believe I fell for him. A liar! Him! Of all people to fall for! _

"Krystal, look… I'm going through a tough time. I didn't mean that in the way I said it. I'm just frustrated, that's all." Fox said, looking at the ground.

_Finally, some truth out of him. _

"I don't even want to see you." She said, and walked back inside, slamming the door shut behind her.

Fox stood out there for the rest of the night.

….

Fox strode into the control room of the Great Fox, eager to start the day. Missions would have no doubt piled up during the 8 month tenure that the team had taken off.

"Aha, just as I suspected," Fox said, his hand flying over the holographic screen, "64 missions pending launch!" Fox's face lit up at the prospects before him. What did these missions entail?

Fox had ordered a rather gaudy upgrade for ROB, the ship's AI, which he intended to use to it's full effectiveness, starting today.

"ROB," Fox said, falling down into the commander's chair, "What've you got for me?"

The robot blared forth into life at the sound of Fox's voice.

"WEAPONS AT 100% COMBAT EFFICIENCY. WARP DRIVE ENABLED. 64 MISSIONS PENDING LAUNCH."

ROB now understood percentages and battle strategy better, which Fox wanted to see for himself.

"Give me a mission close by, something I can handle myself, if you will."

Fox was flying the dreadnaught solo today: skipping classes in exchange for a little extra cash.

"MISSION PROFILES DOWNLOADED TO COMMANDER CONSOLE. BRINGING THEM UP."

Two missions, both nearby, both relatively simple. Fox was impressed.

"Let's deal with this one, the asteroid belt. Seems easy enough. Plus it's paying more." Fox joked.

"SHOULD I SET A COURSE FOR DESTINATION?"

"Please," Fox said, and within seconds the ship was on it's way.

…..

Fox suited up and dropped into the cockpit of the brand new Arwing 3; a model he'd never flown before. He was excited to say the least; brand new AI, brand new weapons, brand new Arwings… the mission was one of the easiest he'd ever been on; a few rogue drones nestled deep within the asteroid belt. Fox wasn't even sure he'd taken a hit. As he dodged and weaved his way through the maze of stone, Fox imagined the possibilities. He'd pulled a job off by himself without taking a hit, all while raking in a calm 100,000 dollars. With these new upgrades, he could become a millionaire! A billionaire, even!


	11. Finally

School ended. Falco and Fox rapidly returned to the Great Fox, brining Krystal with them. Slippy returned to the new HQ with some reluctance; he'd always enjoyed school far too much. Missions began to flow into the team's inbox like a river; each day saw new objectives for the team to carry out. With pay, of course.

Weeks, months, and even years passed by like the dying light of sunset. Krystal behaved, for the most part, as Fox's teammate. Some minor bumps were found when the sentimental part of her cried out for him, where she attempted to gain his favor; even seduce him on one occasion. Fox was not having any of it. She made him uncomfortable, and work didn't allow him time to think. He still wasn't ready to love anybody.

Despite this, Fox sometimes felt…..desire… He wanted to be with Krystal, but he couldn't because he knew he'd lose her. Over the years, this desire intensified, appearing at random times when Fox least expected it. He'd stare at her, look for her, anything to be closer to her. And then, he'd come to his senses, calling himself foolish and moving on with daily life. She appeared in his dreams from time to time. Krystal would be dancing in a forest, unaware of his presence, when Fox would attempt to communicate with her, which she was also unaware of. He knew she could hear him….but she acted like she didn't care. Which, of course, Fox knew she did. So what was it? How could he get her attention, her affection, without losing her?

The team took a week off for Fox's and Falco's birthdays, which happened to take place in the same week in winter. Falco was turning 32, Fox, 30. Tensions ran high in Corneria; Andrew Oikonny was rumored to be amassing a fleet from Venom, to "reclaim" his uncle's empire. People feared the worst, since many had seen firsthand how much damage Venom's forces could do.

Fox spent three days of this week thinking on the balcony of the McCloud Manor. On the third day, he decided that it was time to straighten out; did he care for Krystal or not? He remembered how she had said he'd never loved Fara. What did she mean? And why, if he didn't love her, did he miss her at all? He missed the curve of her hip, her soft smile…..but not HER! Fox didn't miss FARA, he missed her body! The physical love that she gave him, the short-time antidote to his problems! How arrogant and shallow of him! To ignore Krystal for so long! The spurts of desire overthrew him in an instant; Fox needed to find Krystal. To tell her, to do something…..he couldn't just sit here! Falco wasn't home; now was the time.

Fox looked to the sky, and there, before him, was a massive cloud, forming the shape of James McCloud's face.

"Dad…?" he whispered.

James extended his arm, revealing a finger, pointing away from him. The second time James told him to leave him behind…

Fox ran downstairs, muttering, "Thanks, Dad."

_Krystal?_

"Krystal!?" he choked out, sprinting into the living room. There she was, lying on the couch.

"Y-yes?" she said, surprised by his loud voice.

_Shit. What now? Do something! _

"I have to show you something, come on!"

"Uhm….okay?"

"Bring a coat! Big one!" Fox was shouting at her, frantically running around.

"Are you alright?" she asked, her faced puzzled.

"As alright as I'll ever be! Come on!"

…

"Fox, where are we going?" Krystal asked, struggling to keep up with Fox, who was filled with excitement.

He didn't know where they were going. Perhaps some planning should have been done.

Snow began to fall as Fox stuggled to find some excuse of dragging her off into the frozen city like this. He remembered that snow had always fascinated her; there was no snow on Cerinia. Why not take her where there was tons of snow?

"Stick close, Krystal. Don't lose me." Fox said, a bit awkwardly. He'd forgotten that she'd been a Cornerian denizen for almost a decade now; she could handle herself. She made this known.

"I can handle myself, Fox."

The two of them walked along, moving further and further away from the city, out into the snow-capped hills of the city's outskirts. Krystal looked around; the snow was falling much heavier now; it looked like a blizzard might begin soon.

"Fox, maybe we should head back….the weather looks like it might turn for the worse…."

"No…!" Fox exclaimed, thinking of an excuse.

"What's the matter with you today?" she said, laughing at him.

"Uhm…I…don't know?"

"Oh, you know. Think harder." Krystal said, obviously reading his thoughts.

"No, I really don't." Fox said, averting his gaze from her. He could feel his face turning red.

"So we're lying again, aren't we?"

"No…?" Fox had absolutely no idea what to do; the conversation was de-railing rapidly. It was like a game of chess, with Fox constantly ending up checked. It was only a matter of time before he was check-mated.

"I know how to get you to stop," she said, throwing her arms around him, tickling him.

_How the hell did she know I was ticklish?!_

The two of them rocketed down an icy hill, laughing and tumbling over each other.

_She still likes me….._

In that moment, Fox entirely forgot who Fara was. They'd had some good times, but it was time to move on. So many years of ignorance…

_I'm an idiot…_

They reached the bottom of the hill, sending clouds of puffy snow up from the ground.

Fox had landed on top of her.

The two of them looked at each other, confused.

_What do I do?! Do I do it? Now? _

Snow was speckled over her face, over her eyelids and nose. Fox looked into her deep blue eyes, and immediately his thoughts of confusion formed into a plan. Fox hoped she felt the same way.

_She's waited long enough for you, McCloud. _

_Screw it, I love her. _

Fox let his lips lower onto hers, touching in a flaming explosion of passion. His thoughts raced wildly in his head like beasts.

_Finally….._

He moved, she moved. He breathed, she breathed. He laughed, she laughed. Synchronization.

….

Fox didn't know how long they had stayed that way. It must have been quite a long time, as a layer of snow had built up on his back, only interrupted in spots where Krystal had placed her hands.

Fox reluctantly pulled back, knowing that enough was enough.

"I'm such an idiot….." he whispered to her.

"I've waited a decade for that." She said, smiling and breathing heavily. Her body trembled; whether it was from the cold or from him, Fox could not tell.

"We should probably get somewhere warm." Fox said, not taking the initiative to move. He stayed there.

"Yeah….we should…" She didn't move either.

"I don't want to leave this moment."

"Neither do I."

And so they didn't, staying there for a few more moments, before nature finally overcame them, forcing them back inside.


	12. First Encounter

Fox rubbed his eyes, blinking at the white, artificial light above him. They screamed for moisture. He looked down at the stack of papers before him; requests, maps, plans, objectives, reports. The rebellion seemed to be too much to handle right now. All Fox wanted to do right now was sleep, to let Oikonny have his little revenge. He knew he couldn't, but still. Stubborn monkey.

Fox glanced towards the clock.

_0430. _

"Well, so much for a good night's sleep," he said, chuckling as he stared back into the light.

"Fox?" Krystal's soft voice rang out in the hallway. It'd been a week since their first "encounter".

"Yeah, I'm in here." He moaned out, his dry throat struggling to create words.

"Go to sleep, Fox," she said, smiling. Fox was surprised how comfortable she already was with him; she was wearing practically nothing. It took all of Fox's remaining strength not to stare.

"Boys… always with the staring and the working…" she said, strutting out of the War Room. Apparently his strength wasn't enough.

Fox was tempted to follow her. He knew that's what she wanted. It had to be. It was too soon for that though. Not to say that Fox didn't like it; it was just too soon. It'd ruin their relationship. Yes, definitely, it would…

…..

Fox gasped for air, sitting up in his small bunk. A loud bell was ringing. Red lights flared in the room; an alarm. What could it be?

He threw on a shirt- Fox always wore at least a pair of pants when he slept- and bolted out through the sliding titanium door. Peppy was awake, monitoring the status. Fox glanced at the digital clock in the control room, which read,

_0640._

He'd only gotten two hours of sleep. Whatever this alert was, perhaps it could wait.

"Fox," Peppy said, sliding his chair across the controls in order to reach all of them efficiently, "Cornerian Fleet A-23 has engaged Oikonny's fleet in orbit around Fortuna. From here it looks like a winning effort, but they've requested our assistance."

Fox hunkered down into the commander's chair.

"If it looks like a winning effort, why would we respond…? Get Krystal up. Maybe she can crack into them telepathically."

Krystal was up in a flash, jogging through the blast doors.

"What've we got, Fox?" she asked. Fox liked that she specifically addressed him.

"Oikonny's Fleet and Cornerian Fleet A-23 are fighting in orbit around Fortuna. Can you read the minds of Oikonny's pilots?"

"You've got to give me a second…there's a lot of them," she said, sitting down. She closed her eyes and breathed heavily. She looked like she was in pain.

"Krystal…?"

"They're going to get ambushed!" she blurted out.

"What?" Fox and Peppy said in unison.

"Oikonny's got stealth bombers behind his front lines! He's going to blow them out of the water!"

"Then let's do this," Fox said, placing his hand on the comms button, "Star Fox, we're moving to engage Oikonny's fleet above Fortuna. Bring your A- Game, I wanna be in the fray five minutes ago."

Krystal was stunned by how professional he could be sometimes.

…..

"This is Team Star Fox…ready for duty," Fox said over the communicator.

"Ah, leave this losers to the pros! We'll beat 'em in no time!" Slippy butted in.

General Pepper's face appeared on the hologram transmitter.

"Well, Fox, looks like we're not too late." He said, saluting.

"Of course, General."

"It's just so crazy! I can't believe Andross had so many damn troops left over!" Slippy said, butting in again.

"They're all scum, most likely in it for the money." Peppy said, still sitting.

"Quite dedicated for a bunch of hired guns…" Krystal murmured.

"So we're here because…?" Fox asked; a rhetorical question.

"We're here because we gotta put this creep on ice," Falco said. How come everybody wanted to butt into Fox's conversations today?

"Yes, you must take him down. That's your top priority here."

"Consider it done," Fox said, cutting off communications, "let's go team."

….

"Falco and Slippy, take the left side! Fox and Krystal, hit the right! Everybody strike…now!"

Fox swooped in first, eager to take the brunt of Andross's force. Shots fired off in unison; most were not his own. Accelerating past them, Fox saw Krystal do the same out of the corner of his eye. He swung in diagonally, facing the starboard side of three frigates. He compressed the trigger rapidly, taking all three out. Surely that wasn't all his fault, was it?

Then came the stealth squads; poor quality, but stealth squads nonetheless. Krystal had been correct.

"Fox, I've managed to hack into their comms!" Slippy exclaimed, clearly under some pressure from enemy fighters.

"….this guy some kind of demon!? Bah! I'll handle him!" Oikonny. Oikonny's flagship turned and headed down towards the planet.

A small fort waited with bated breath for them on the surface; quite an easy target, truth be told. Star Fox had no trouble cornering Oikonny in a large ravine.

"I must put an end to our relationship!" Oikonny yelled, his flagship morphing.

"DIE!"

An Andross style fighter: a head and two hands.

"You think you can win? Don't make me laugh," Fox said, clearly pissed off by the reference Oikonny was making. He dove in, low and fast, coming face first with the flying head.

"What's this? And Andross wannabe?" Falco said, laughing.

"W-watch your mouth! I'll show you!"

The fight that ensued was short and sweet; another in the line of Andross that was a poor fighter, it seemed.

"Hahahaha! Is that all you've got?!" Oikonny asked, the robotic hands in flames. "I am the one and only true heir to the great emperor, Andross! The new emperor: ANDREW OIKONN-" Lasers came crashing down, splitting through Oikonny's ship like a hot knife through butter.

"What the…..reinforcements?" Fox asked.

A large drill flew down, crashing into the ground, decimating any hope of Oikonny's survival.

"That doesn't look friendly," Falco chimed in.

"Such strange thought patterns…." Krystal whispered to herself.

"No! It can't be!" Peppy exclaimed.

"APAROID. APAROID. APAROID." ROB's voice blared loudly through Fox's headset.

"What? Aparoid…?" Fox asked.

The aparoid fired a beam at Krystal's Arwing, which was barely dodged. Fox's instincts kicked in immediately.

_Protect her._

It was like he was on Sauria again.

**If you haven't read the newest update in my One-Shot Collection, you wouldn't know that updates have slowed because I was recently in a bad car crash which broke my left hand. I was in the hospital for almost a week, and my laptop which I used to write was destroyed, as it was in my car when I crashed. So I basically had to rewrite all of Star Fox FTV that I had already written, plus make up for what I had planned to write. So updates stopped for a while, but I'm back, so that's cool. Updates should come out normally from now on. **

**-ThatWinchieGuy**


	13. Aparoid Invasion

_Holy shit, they're even creepier in person!_

Fox backed up, watching as Aparoids closed in around him, mulling over his options. He could charge straight through, or he could try his luck at climbing the wall behind him. Both were risky. Fox looked at the ammo counter on his blaster, which read;

_35_

_35 shots, 35 kills it is._

This war was proving to be quite the challenge.

The fight on Katina that ensued was brutal; Aparoid blood sprayed from twisted bodies, meshed with Fox's fur. A damp, blue-green color. The scent of rotting meat. Fox was scared; for the first time in years he was scared on the job. The Aparoids were vicious creatures; biting and tearing at Fox's limbs, drawing blood. He knew Krystal was wincing in her cockpit as she watched him tear through wave after wave of Aparoids.

…

Pigma's treachery led the team to Sargasso; a welcomed mission, especially since the bite marks on Fox's arms were still healing from the Battle on Katina.

"This hideout's supposed to be a home to all sorts of criminals!" Slippy said nervously. Fox knew who HE was picking for this mission.

"GATEWAY WARP INITIATED. TRACKING….COMPLETE. THE ENEMY CAN NOW WARP TROOPS INTO THE BASE." ROB droned.

"Even if we pound them, this is going to become a war of attrition….. Gotta do something about those transfer gates." Fox said, pacing and then pointing out gates on the map.

"Hmhmm…." Peppy mumbled.

"Alright, Slippy and I will take out the transfer gates inside. Falco and Krystal, keep those battleships at bay. It'll only take us a minute."

"Got it. Leave space to us." Falco said, leaving to prepare. Slippy had left as well, leaving Fox, Peppy, and Krystal alone in the bridge. Fox made to leave, but was followed closely by Krystal.

"Fox…"

"Yes, Krystal?"

"B-be careful." She said, laying her hands on his chest and leaning into him. Her face was in a frown.

"Uhm….I will. Remember to roll off lasers, alright? Watch your back, and don't be afraid to ask Falco for help. He's flawless out there."

"Okay-" she said, leaning in closer and kissing him quickly. "Don't get hurt again."

"I won't."

Then the couple parted, Krystal going to the right, Fox, to the left.

…

Pigma hadn't fled to Sargasso; the whole ordeal appeared to be a waste of time, besides gaining a bit of confidence from taking out Star Wolf yet again. Fox had made sure to spray a few extra shots into the cockpit of Panther Caruso's Wolfen.

Pigma's trail led Star Fox Team to Fichina; an uninhabitable ice planet turned gold mining tycoon base via a climate control center.

Getting the climate control center back online was no easy task; Pigma had hacked into it's security systems and turned the sentries against the Team's ID verification. Then the Aparoids appeared, bringing with them a large piece of artillery; no doubt to cripple the climate control center again. Star Fox destroyed this cannon in a short, intense fight.

Fox landed his Arwing so he could complete work on the climate control. Resting on the destroyed cannon, Fox ran his hand over the suface of it. It felt like cold, dead skin. Like it was once alive.

"Nicely done, Fox." Krystal said over the communicator.

"Still…..getting attacked by your allies? That's crazy, man!" Falco chimed in.

"Machines are machines, after all. Those without strong wills can be easily turned to evil." Peppy said.

"Those without strong wills….allies and enemies…." Fox mumbled. The words reminded him of some advice his father had given him all those years ago….

"What is it, Fox?" Krystal asked.

Fox paused for a moment.

"Nothing. That sounds like someone I know, that's all." He said, frowning and shaking his head at the ground below him.

….

Team Star Fox followed Pigma Dengar into the asteroid belt, and, after learning that he had been consumed by the Aparoids, destroyed his ship and retrieved the Memory Core; an Aparoid AI that contained the location of the Aparoid Homeworld. Soon after, The Great Fox received two messages; one from General Pepper, and one in the form of telepathy. Sauria was under attack. The team decided to head to Sauria to provide any assistance they could, no matter how dangerous it was to leave the Memory Core without impregnable guard.

"Slippy, bring me up a view of Thorntail Hollow." Fox commanded.

"I can't watch…" Krystal said, covering her eyes.

"Be strong." Fox comforted her.

"Fox….it's horrible." Slippy said, motioning towards the screen.

Dinosaurs lay dead, with large, blue potholes in their scales. Blood mixed with dirt, heads lay severed on the ground, leaking into the grass.

"This is unforgiveable!" Fox said, grimacing.

"Aparoid Hatchers," Peppy said, zooming in on a remote corner of the massacre scene, "this must be how they multiply. If we can destroy those hatchers, we might just have a chance."

"Alright, me and Krystal will head down to the surface and handle those hatchers. Falco and Slippy, the skies are yours." Fox said, closing some programs on the interface as Falco and Slippy made for the hangar.

"A mission together at last." Krystal said as she came up behind Fox, holding him around the neck and whispering into his ear.

"Oh! Uhmmm…..y-yeah." Fox said, clearly taken back by the change of heart she'd had; or perhaps by the show of affection in public. She'd never done that before.

"Hey, what are you two doing? Let's go!" Falco said rhetorically.

…

Krystal and Fox dropped from their Arwings, blasters in hand. The battle in the sky raged on; two Arwings against an army. Fox's team amazed him when he watched them from a distance.

"Krystal, take the hatcher off to our right. I'm heading left. Meet me over there, in that tower, when you're done. I'll come give you a hand if you need it. Let's move." Fox said, leaving her presence and wading amongst the fallen and mauled dinosaurs that lay around him.

The scene looked like something out of a horror movie, like it couldn't possibly be real. It looked like the apocalypse, with Fox and Krystal as the only survivors, scrounging through piles of rotting corpses. The scene hit Fox hard; he'd never seen destruction on this scale before. He'd turn away from a decapitated head, only to find that behind him lay another. And to his right. And to his left. Death enveloped him, suffocated him. Where were the Aparoids hiding? Where were the survivors hiding?

"Fox, I've reached the hatcher. I'm not looking at too many Aparoids, maybe six or seven. I'm going to try and take them out quietly and then blow the hatcher."

Fox snapped back into reality. "Yeah….okay, good. I've almost reached the cave where another hatcher is. I don't see any Aparoids guarding it; I'm going to head in. I'll lose connection to you. Stay safe. Fox, out."

Hatcher after hatcher fell; a total of 7. Fox limped over to a rock outside of the last hatcher's cave, which he refused to let Krystal help him with for fear of her getting hurt. Fox lay back, still standing, leaning on the rock. He was covered in all sorts of gunk; Aparoid blood, his blood, dinosaur blood. It wasn't pretty. All Fox could think about was rest. It was at this time that Fox noticed a particularly large gash above his right eye, which was oozing blood down his face and into his right eye.

"Krystal, you there?" Fox said in a raspy voice.

"Fox, I'm here. It looks like the Aparoids are retreating."

"Okay….get to me, I'm marking my position on your map." Fox said, swiping blood out of his eyelid.

"Are you alright?"

"The seventh hatcher put up a fight, but it's gone…..holy shit…" Fox said, disconnecting, panting, and sweating.

"Falco?" Fox asked, opening another line.

"Yeah? I'm here; Aparoids are backing down."

"Come….get me, we gotta get to the Earthwalker Capital….."

"I'm coming, buddy." Falco said.

"Tell Krystal to get there…."

"I got ya. Gimme two minutes; Falco out." Disconnect.

…

"Looks like they're all gone." Fox said, looking over the Earthwalker Capital. He'd been given medical attention aboard the Great Fox and then flew back to the surface to check on the situation there. It wasn't good; population loss at 64%, Cape Horn destroyed entirely, 31% of the water contaminated…..Sauria would have it's hands full for quite a while.

"Sauria should be safe for some time….." Krystal said, doing the same as Fox.

Then, something approached. Fox could sense it behind him. He flashed around, hand on his blaster, ready to draw.

"FOX!" The Earthwalker roared as he soared through the air, directly at Fox.

"Tri-!" That was all Fox managed to utter before the now full-grown Prince Tricky came crashing into him.

"Fox! Krystal! I knew you'd come! Thank you so much!" Tricky exclaimed with pure joy on his face.

"Trick...Get off…Ow…" The pain struck through Fox's head like an arrow.

Krystal just laughed; it was good to see an old friend these days.

….

"So, Fox, you're here to fight 'em right? Well, I'm goin' with ya!" Tricky said as Fox and Krystal rode on his back, heading back to the city.

"Hm….I appreciate it, but you're needed here old pal. Besides, I'm leaving Sauria in your care. Remember; you're the leader here now Tricky." Fox said, giving him a firm pat on the neck.

"Okay. I'll do it. You can count on me, Fox."

Fox began nodding with approval as Tricky continued on.

"Yeah, yeah! I'll take care of things here so you two can come back on your honeymoon!"

"WHA-? What're you, nuts?! We aren't….we're not yet?! I mean…uh…?!" Fox said, his cheeks turning a furious shade of scarlet. He could feel Krystal looking at him, laughing at him.

"Not yet, then?" Tricky said, trying to stifle his giggles so that the two of them didn't fall off.

"Uh…..I mean…..This isn't a conversation for children!" He said, throwing his hands up in the air. Krystal began laughing. That only made the whole ordeal more embarrassing.

"Hey! I am not a kid anymore!" Tricky said in defense.

"Then stop acting like one!" Fox said, hitting him on the head.

"You're just mad 'cuz you don't wanna talk about your feelings!"

"Alright, alright, that's enough boys." Krystal managed to say through her contained giggles.

_Well, shit._

Fox looked back at Krystal quickly, who had her eyes closed since she was laughing.

_Is it a possibility?_

**Hey guys, so a longer than normal chapter today for two reasons. **

**I feel bad about not being able to update for a bit and I thought I'd treat you a bit.**

**I want to try and get through the Aparoid War kind of quickly, but not fly past it like it's nothing. The Aparoid War plays a vital part in Fox's and Krystal's relationship, which is mostly what this story is about, so I can't just ignore it like I did for most of Adventures. **

**So if you enjoy, don't forget to leave a review, and if you hate it, leave an even longer one. I'm always open to negative or positive feedback. **

**-ThatWinchieGuy**


	14. Assault on Corneria

"Team, heed closely what I am about to say," the hologram said, " While you were on Sauria, a colossal Aparoid armada appeared. The majority of the Cornerian defense fleet…..was decimated."

"Shit…..no, no, no!" Fox said, pounding his fists onto the keyboard.

"The one silver lining is that you are all okay. You're our last hope, Star Fox; the invasion is progressing at an incredible speed." Fox turned away from the hologram of General Pepper, eager to get moving, eager to get revenge.

"ROB, what are the conditions on the surface?" Fox said, struggling to keep calm.

"RADAR JAMMERS ARE IN PLACE. RADAR USE IS IMPOSSIBLE."

"Shit!" Fox said, throwing his fists into the keyboard once more.

"The enemy is using radar jamming technology that we know nothing about." General Pepper said weakly.

"That doesn't matter! We can still demolish them!" Fox said.

"Yes….but you must attack them directly from the surface. Please…..Fox…I'm already….." General Pepper's hologram looked around frantically, not seeing anything. He flashed off to his right, and the hologram fizzled. A faint scream could be heard through the static.

"General? General Pepper!" Fox said, reaching out towards the hologram.

"Shit…he's in serious trouble." Peppy said, turning around in his chair, prepping for battle.

"Screw this, I'm going planetside to destroy those jammers!" Fox said, heading for the door.

"What!? Going solo again?" Falco pursued him.

"We can't take the risk of all of us getting killed, can we?!" Fox said, continuing his march for the armory. He paused a moment and placed his hand on Falco's shoulder.

"If I don't make it back, I want you to go next." Falco brushed the hand off his shoulder, continuing on his way towards the hangar.

"Yeah, whatever. Just hurry and go smash up those blasted jammers already, would ya?" It seemed a bit inconsiderate, but that was Falco. Fox wasn't phased in the slightest; if Falco even responded to something like that, it meant he was serious.

"Fox, wait!" Boots thudded on the titanium floor as Falco sprinted off to the hangar.

"Krystal, what is it?"

"I'm going to the surface with you."

"No, it's too dangerous." Fox said, continuing on his way to the armory.

"I can handle myself; I'm coming."

"No, you're not, Krystal." Fox said, stopping and turning to face her.

"Yes, I am." She said, stepping up close to his face.

"No….I can't let you get hurt. I barely took out the Aparoids on Sauria, and there were much less there."

"But you had my help there! You'll die, Fox!" She said, concerned.

"Krystal…."

"Fox. I'm coming."

Fox looked around for a moment, deciding what to say.

"Get in your Arwing, Krystal. If I die, it's not on you." And with that he was gone, walking off to the armory.

….

The scene in Corneria City was the same as Sauria, only far more horrifying. The Aparoids were not in the area of the city where Fox had landed, so he had a few minutes to take the apocalypse in. Dead bodies thrown deliberately into piles. Heads chopped off and nailed onto walls. Children crawling amongst the dead, frantically searching for their mothers. The stench of corpses surrounded him. Fox continued on, blaster trained on the rooftops-those that remained, anyways- and alleyways. At one point, Fox had seen one of his friends from high school; dead, with a stake skewering his body from rectum to skull. Fox vomited and pushed on, finger on the trigger.

Fox's first encounter with a jammer had been an easy one. The Aparoids seemed….tired. Or perhaps he was bent on killing as many of them as he could. It had to be one of the two. Fox assumed it was the latter; he felt stronger, quicker, better. The jammers after the first seemed easy. All of them. Fox was angry, vengeful.

He stood at the foot of the last jammer, scouring through Aparoid bodies, searching for survivors. He leapt up to an elevated platform of sorts; two pillars which had collapsed into the shape of a triangle. Fox stood there, drenched in Aparoid blood, gun falling from his palm. Fox looked around; at his home, what was left of it. He began to sweat profusely, hyperventilating. He stepped down from the platform and sat down among the decaying bugs.

"MCCLOUD, FOX. SITUATION CRITICAL. RECOMMEND IMMEDIATE MEDEVAC." ROB chimed in through his speaker.

"Fox?!" Krystal yelped through the headset.

"I'm fine….it's tough down here, that's all….that's all." Fox choked out, standing up.

"Fox, I've moved your Arwing remotely. Get there, I'm marking it on your map." Peppy said professionally.

"Do you think General Pepper's okay?" Slippy asked.

"All we can do is hope for his safety." Krystal said. She had to have known something.

…

Fox reached the platform Peppy had moved his Arwing to in complete silence. The whole thing seemed….off. Like something was going to happen.

Right as Fox thought this, Aparoids swarmed down on him as if from nowhere. Fox gritted his teeth, hands on his blaster, ready to fire. He closed his eyes, waiting for the end to take him.

_I'm sorry, Krystal. I should've listened to you…._

"You're a pitiful sight, pup." A garbled voice came through his headset. Fox looked to the sky and saw a triangle of red dots flying towards him.

"The Wolfen….Wolf?!" Fox said, not paying attention to the arachnids closing him in. The Wolfen prepped to fire; it was only a matter of seconds.

"AHHHHHHHH!" Fox yelled, sprinting through the swarm of Aparoids as bursts of blood and fire enveloped him. Fox used all his strength to leap off the platform into the bloody street must have screamed, but he didn't remember.

But suddenly, Fox felt his face fall flat on metal, not far from where he'd leapt off. He looked around and noticed he was flying…..HE WAS FLYING!? Fox gripped tightly to the metal wing of the Wolfen, attempting to gather his surroundings.

"Wolf….what're you doing here?!" Fox yelled over the wind attempting to blow him off the wing.

"If anybody's gonna tan your hide, it's gonna be me. Now wipe that stupid look off your face, we're not done yet!"

….

Riding on Wolf's fighter was one of the strangest moments of Fox's life. He didn't know which to trust more; the Aparoids flying around him or the lifelong enemy sitting inside the cockpit directly to his right.

When the Aparoids appeared to be retreating, ROB blared a warning horn into Team Star Fox's headsets.

"UNKNOWN VESSEL APPROACHING AT HIGH SPEED."

"More of them?" Fox asked.

"Hold it…..that silhouette…" Peppy's voice trailed off.

"Is that the General's Flagship?" Slippy asked, surprised.

"Is….that you…..Fox? Too late….the Aparo…." General Pepper coughed out.

"General….it can't be!" Fox yelled into the wind.

"They took….me…..my body is….no longer under….my control…"

"No!" Fox yelled once more; in vain.

"This is my…final request...Destroy this ship…..destroy me!"

"Don't say that! I cant…." Fox was cut off by the General's Flagship, which flew inches away from his head.

"You would…make me an….accomplice…to these fiends!?"

"That's the truth of it, Fox. Accept it." Wolf butted in from his cockpit.

"Why?! Why…is…this….happening!?" Fox screamed, gripping tightly to the hull of the Wolfen.

…..

The battle against General Pepper seemed a forced one; Fox regretted every bullet fired, every word left unspoken. Fox put all of it out of mind later….only the outcome remained.

The Flagship shot flames into the darkened sky, then proceeded to plummet towards the surface. Fox watched in defeat as the blue ship streaked through the air.

"General Pepper!" Peppy yelled.

And then, an Arwing I appeared, rocketing after the Flagship.

"Peppy!" Fox yelled, not ready to lose another lifelong friend. The two ships disappeared behind a skyscraper, and then, an explosion. Fox waited and listened. They had to have made it…..they had to…..

"You alright, General?" Peppy said, groaning.

"Peppy…what have you done?" Pepper's voice had returned to it's normal, professional tone, and, though injured, Fox knew he'd make it.

"Heh….looks like I'll never make retirement now….ooh…"

….

"Well, I owe you my life on that one, Wolf." Fox said, leaning on the Wolfen's hull.

Wolf sat, staring forward in his cockpit.

"I thought I told you; I didn't come here to save you."

"Even so." Fox said, beginning to walk away.

"Fox….a piece of advice." Wolf said.

"Hmm?"

"When the time comes…..don't hesitate. Just act." And then he was gone, speeding off to some unknown crime. It seemed solid advice, but Fox knew he couldn't always follow that. He had to think when deciding the lives of others. That's what made him and Wolf different, really. Fox had compassion for people; Wolf, for money or gain. It was sound advice, but it wouldn't work all the time. Wolf reminded him a bit of his father, in a way; always acting on instinct. James's instinct was just different than Wolf's.

_Wolf….._

Fox's thoughts lingered on the name for a few moments, then switched gears to focus on the tasks at hand.


	15. A Little Rendevous

_Clink. Clink. Clink._

Someone was knocking gently on Fox's door. He placed the papers he was working on down on the nightstand and padded over to the door. He watched as the door slid open when he drew near.

Krystal was on the other side, looking concerned.

"Krystal…what is it you need?" Fox asked.

"I'm….I'm worried about attacking the Aparoid Homeworld."

"Why? I'm sure we'll be fine."

"I just….I am."

"Is there any way I can help?" Fox asked, unknowingly drawing nearer to her.

"I just need someone right now….can you do that for me?"

"Of course," he said, waving her inside, "come on in."

"Thank you," she said, her eyes averted towards the ground. Fox could notice her blushing. Maybe she wasn't as "worried" as she let on.

"It's nice in here….warm." Krystal said, looking around. She'd never really been in Fox's room before; let alone under the current circumstances.

"It's the same room you have," he said, laughing.

"I know, but it's just… different." Krystal said, sitting down on the bed.

_Oh…OH. She came here for….THAT._

It was at this moment that Fox realized he was not wearing a shirt. Fox's face became a tomato in seconds.

"I-I should…proba…ly put a…yeah." He muttered, scratching the back of his neck and shuffling over to the drawers.

"I don't mind." Krystal said cheerfully.

_She DEFINITELY came for THAT. _

"Uhm…o-okay."

"We haven't had much time together, have we? Not since the beginning of the invasion…" Krystal said.

"I..uhm….suppose we haven't; work and all that."

"Well…"

"W-well what?"

"We're here now, aren't we?" She said, staring into his emerald eyes.

"I guess…?"

"Come," she said, motioning towards the bed, "sit."

_Oh please just hold it together, Fox. _

Fox sat down on the bed; Krystal let her head fall into his lap.

"Hmm….." She sighed, blowing warm air into Fox's hair, pushing it off his eyelids. Perhaps he needed to cut it; that wasn't an option with the war going on.

Krystal giggled as Fox smiled at her, with his hands cupped around her head. It was an odd moment; something he and Krystal had never shared before, but beautiful nonetheless. Complete silence.

Krystal pulled herself up towards his muzzle, millimeters away from him.

"Uh…Krystal?"

She lifted herself up even further and whispered into his ear,

"_It's so attractive when you stutter like that." _

"I….uh…..uh…." Fox's eyes were somewhere between closed and open, staring into the cerulean void.

Krystal wrapped herself around Fox's neck, kissing him and nipping at him. Fox breathed heavily, gasping nervously.

_Get a hold of yourself._

Fox found himself on the opposite end now; giving kisses instead of receiving. He continued to sweat profusely from his brow.

"Fox…." Krystal moaned, her eyes closed, muzzle facing the ceiling.

She flicked her tail in the air and shut off the light in a fell swoop. Fox could feel himself falling upon the warmth of Krystal's body as the lamp's presence left the two of them alone in the void of space.

…..

Fox awoke some time later, only to find that Krystal was no longer in the bed with him. She must have left not long ago; Fox could still feel the heat coming off the place where she had rested. He pulled himself out of bed , and, noticing a small piece of paper on his drawer, walked over to investigate it.

_Got up early and didn't want to wake you up, seeing as you haven't slept well in days. _

_-Love you, _

_Krystal_

Fox folded the paper up, threw on some clothes, put the paper in his pocket, and walked out into the hallway; all this with the silly grin of infatuation on his face.

Fox knew he'd remember that night for the rest of his life.

….

Fox had many things to do today, including a meeting with Beltino Toad and his research team. But before Fox handled that, he wanted to see Krystal. Nobody appeared to be awake; Falco wouldn't get up for at least a few hours and Slippy was probably sleeping as well. Fox made for the kitchen.

_Perhaps she'll be in there. _

Fox's hypothesis had been wrong. It was Peppy who sat at the large table, gulping down his daily dose of caffeine.

"You two need to keep it down sometimes. These big ears of mine are very sensitive, you know," Peppy said, turning around to greet him.

Fox's face glew as he mumbled, "Oh! Well…I…uh, we…..uh…."

"What happens in your quarters, stays in your quarters. Besides, I didn't hear much." Peppy chuckled.

"S-sorry." Fox scratched the back of his neck furiously.

"Coffee?" Peppy stood up and walked over to the counter.

"Sure. Do you know where Krystal is?"

Peppy took out a mug and began to pour coffee into it.

"She was just in here, in fact. Couldn't stop talking about you."

"Oh…really?"

"Fox, let me give you some advice here, son." Peppy said, setting the mug down on the table and passing it to Fox.

"Uhm…okay?"

"I know you're a bit…focused, let's say, on Krystal right now. But you've gotta pay attention to this war, too. Attacking the Aparoid Homeworld is going to be one of the toughest things you've ever done, Fox. I need you to focus on that completely; otherwise, we're not going to make it. You can't have favorites on that battlefield. You treat each person like they ARE Krystal. Do you understand me?"

Fox took a second to take it all in. Was Peppy telling him that, should something happen to her, Fox should treat the woman he was POSITIVE he loved with all his being as some military grunt? This angered him.

"So you would have me sacrifice her life for that of a military grunt?"

"If it comes down to that, you can't jeopardize the entire mission. If you go down, we all do. We need you, Fox, and in more ways than you realize. You can't let protecting her be your first priority. You've gotta put winning first."

This agitated Fox further, who spilled the coffee onto the table and walked away.

"Like hell I do…." Fox mumbled as he stormed off into the hallway, eager to talk to Krystal.

Falco walked in right as Fox left.

"Geez, what's his deal?" Falco asked, pointing over his shoulder.

"Nothing, Falco." Peppy said, cleaning up the spill.

"Did it have something to do with last night? Two of them kept me up until one in the morning…"

"No…but I think he gets where I'm coming from."

"Alright. Let's focus on this invasion then, old man." Falco said, taking his coffee and leaving the room.


	16. Losing a Friend

The hologram communicator shrieked, attempting to connect. A static but stable connection was formed; Corneria's communications systems were badly damaged by the attack.

"This is Beltino! We've done it, team! We've found the location of the Aparoid Homeworld!" Slippy's father pronounced. He'd always been as awkward and flighty as Slippy was…just as useful as well.

"That's great news, Beltino. Forward the files to us and we'll begin the invasion plans." Fox said, standing alone in the control room.

"Wait! You can't go yet!"

"I'm sorry, Mr. Toad. We're going and you can't stop us." Fox said, pacing around the bridge, his mind on other things.

"But if you go now, you'll just get killed! Take the self-destruct program." Beltino said defiantly.

"Self-destruct program? Bring it up on my monitor." Fox was at least intrigued in the idea. He knew he could take the Aparoids by himself, but it couldn't hurt to bring along some extra firepower.

"I've discovered that the Aparoids are vulnerable to apoptosis." Fox recognized the term faintly.

"So you mean they contain cells created for self-destruction?"

"Correct! And my team and I are developing a program to set off a chain reaction in those cells! We believe, and with good reason, that if you fire the program into the queen, all Aparoids will in turn self-destruct as well."

"Incredible…we can take them all out with a single blow." Fox said, skimming over Beltino's research.

…

The Great Fox blinked into view in orbit around a deep, cerulean planet; not much smaller than Corneria.

"THIS is it?" Falco asked, shocked. The planet looke barren, lifeless. It seemed…fitting, to say the least.

"It's beautiful…I…wasn't expecting that." The planet was the same color as Krystal…

"It's radius is….disproportionate to it's mass." Peppy said, confused.

"Look at that!"Slippy said, pointing to a corner of the planet. It looked like an asteroid had hit the planet; the surface was lined with crevices and cracks, oozing a neon blue liquid.

"ROB, bring it up on screen." Fox commanded.

"MULTIPLE SHIELD GENERATORS DETECTED. POWER FLOW MOVES TO THIS SPOT." ROB droned as he zoomed in, revealing a narrow, yellow passageway, leading deep into the planet.

"That must be how the Aparoids get in and out…" Fox thought aloud.

"It has to be." Peppy replied.

"And if the past is any indication, there'll be hatchers along with those generators."

"Even if we COULD move forward, that's as far as we'd get. It'll be dangerous, but we have to take out those generators; because otherwise, we're not going anywhere." Peppy said as the team headed off to prepare for combat.

….

The Aparoid Homeworld was…disturbing, to say the least. To Fox, everything there seemed backwards; like it wasn't put on correctly, or like it was trying to be strange. Of course, that couldn't be correct; the Aparoids had their way of life, the Cornerians, theirs. Is this how the Aparoids felt when invading Corneria?

Fox moved like a machine; instinctively, effectively. He methodically wiped out each and every hatcher inside and outside the fort. Along with them, the generators. Even after the war, Fox didn't like talking about the invasion. The Homeworld made him uneasy. He felt like he could barely stand. It was physically painful just to be on it's surface.

Fox sat in his Arwing, watching the energy shield fall above the passage.

"Alright team. Buckle in, stay focused, and hit the planet!" Fox said, flipping switches in his cockpit, preparing his mind.

"Fox! Wait! Energy readings keep growing! The…the shield's going back up!?" Slippy exclaimed, shocked.

Falco's Arwing flew towards the passage at lightning speed, firing off laser after laser. Each pinged off the shield, leaving no mark on it's surface.

"You gotta be kiddin' me!"

"Dang it!" Fox said, slamming his fists against his Arwing's controls.

"Out of the way! Everybody, now!" Peppy yelled over the channel.

Fox looked around frantically. Was something attacking them? Out of the corner of his eye, Fox saw the Great Fox…sending it's flames into the air, screaming towards them.

"Peppy?!" The team yelped in unison.

Aparoids crawled over it's hull; climbing over each other, biting and clawing their way into the hull.

"Peppy, divert course!" Fox commanded.

"EXTREME IMPAIRMENT. HULL WILL NOT SURVIVE MORE DAMAGE." ROB droned as red lights flared in the control room.

"Who cares! All power to the main guns, charge 'em up!"

"CHARGING…50 PERCENT…..GUNS OPERATIONAL."

"FI-" Peppy's voice trailed off as the guns overpowered it, silenced it. The main guns fired; the sound was deafening. Fox had never been so close to them when they fired. The team held their hands over their ears, trying to protect them. Their eyes were squeezed shut.

Only Fox opened his eyes to see…

The shield was still there.

"DAMAGE CAPACITY EXCEEDED."

"Screw it! We're goin' out in style!" Peppy screamed over the explosions. Peppy's body shuddered and shook, trying to stay in control.

"Peppy! You can't die!" Fox extended his arm outward towards the Great Fox.

"Back off! All of you! NOW!" It reminded him so much of James….

"You can't!"

"This is my duty! And now you've gotta fulfill yours!"

"Don't do it!" Slippy screamed.

"ARRRRRRGGGGGGHHHHH!" Peppy yelled as the Great Fox crashed into the shield, shattering it.

"Peppy! Speak to me!" Fox yelled over the explosions.

"What are you fools doing!? That shield will be right back! Go!"

Fox closed his eyes; he didn't want to watch. His lip quivered, his body shook.

Fox opened his eyes, looking around frantically. His breath was ragged, like blood was clogging his throat.

"Enough! Peppy's opened a road for us! We've got to move on…without him! So come on!" Fox screamed angrily into his headset. He could hear Slippy weeping softly…

"COME ON! LET'S MOVE!" Fox barked. That was the first time his emotions had ever shown on a job in over a decade.

…

"Falco. We've got uninvited guests following us."

"What?"

"Looks like you idiots made it after all." Leon announced, flying in beside Falco.

"Oh….not you fools…." Falco complained.

Panther flew in front of Krystal's Arwing.

"Don't worry, Krystal. I'll protect you from here on out." Krystal gave a distasteful grunt. Fox was flying in front of both them. He accelerated, sending sparks into Panther's cockpit.

"So, you made it." Wolf said.

"Hmph. Just barely." Fox replied.


	17. I'm Done

Fox weaved around hundreds of Aparoid obstacles, ranging from lasers to shield walls to turrets. He thought he was going to die…the Aparoids had taken so many lives already….

_Krystal…..I hope you're listening….. _

Shards of metal and plastic pinged off his Arwing.

_If I don't make it… I want you to know this…. _

Fox's eyes were staring forward into the void.

_I've never loved anybody as much as I love you. _

His left wing lit on fire; struck by an Aparoid laser.

_I want to spend my life with you. _

He rolled, narrowly dodging a rocket.

_I'd do anything to protect you._

And then he was there, in the large antechamber, staring at the Aparoid Queen.

47 fighters whirled around her. Fox saw Andross's face.

…..

"Fox…." The queen groaned. "Fox don't be a fool stop all this nonsense." She was imitating Pigma.

"P-Pigma?" Fox asked.

"But…you're supposed to be dead…." Falco said, equally puzzled.

"Star Fox team accept defeat." General Pepper said. Fox could hardly tell if this was real…

"Gen-General Pepper?!" Slippy said, shocked.

"Give in this is not sacrifice this is evolution." Peppy said.

"No! Not Peppy too! Stop!" Krystal wailed. It seemed so real…like a nightmare.

"Fox…." James McCloud said.

"Dad?" The antechamber transformed into the McCloud Manor.

"That's enough…There's no need for you to be hurt anymore." James said, placing an icy hand on Fox's shoulder.

"Go away!" Fox screamed, clutching at his head, trying to rip the voice out.

"Let us live as one." James said, smiling. The furnace glowed in the background. It looked so warm, yet felt so cold.

"Fox, don't listen to it! You know your father is…" Falco yelled. Fox was instantly snapped back into the cockpit of his Arwing, looking at the Queen's true form.

"I KNOW! My father…..my father would NEVER tell me to give up!" Fox yelled, sweating in his seat.

"Let us live together." James said, hovering over Fox. General Pepper and Pigma joined in the chant.

"Together as one." They said in unison, over and over, unchanging. It seemed like decades before it stopped.

_When the time comes…..don't hesitate. Just act._

"Team…let's give the Queen her present."

All 47 Aparoids sprang into action.

….

The battle raged for what seemed a lifetime. The Aparoid Queen looked so much like James to him….it was difficult for Fox to pull the trigger over and over. Fox finally found a small hole in her armor; just big enough to fire the self-destruct program through.

"Take this you bitch!" Fox yelled, sending sweat droplets flying in his cockpit. The small bomb impacted with the Queen's body- now smoldering and bleeding- and disappeared underneath her skin.

"Is it working?" Fox asked over the communicator, panting.

"I'm not sure…." Slippy said quizzically.

"All for us. All things in the universe will be ours." The Queen droned with her true voice; a raspy, choking voice. She sounded like a dying animal, left by the side of the road, coughing as it screeches for help. The antechamber trembled, making it difficult to stay in the air. Fox, however, was more concerned by the Queen's words.

"What?!" He uttered aloud. Did the Aparoids truly believe that all things in the universe were theirs?

"All for us. Everything in this universe exists for us." The Queen screeched again. It was as if she was talking to Fox, responding to his question.

"Bow before us. Submit to us." It was quite ironic, actually. He she was, a flaming wreck, demanding reverence she did not deserve. It would have been funny, had Fox not known her power.

The Queen began to sink into the floor below. There wouldn't be much time before the hole closed.

"Fox, if she escapes now, she'll create an antibody!" Slippy shrieked.

"Fox." Falco proclaimed.

"Fox." Krystal said, continuing the chant.

"Fox." Slippy ended.

"I'm going in. Leave without me. If I don't make it back… I love each and every one of you." Fox didn't wait for objections or pleas….he dove straight into the purple void, ignoring the desires of his team. He could hear them shouting, screaming his name as the communication line was cut off.

…

_This is my duty. And now, you've gotta fulfill yours!_

_When the time comes….. don't hesitate. Just act. _

_I don't want to leave this moment._

_You remind me so much of myself when I was your age… _

Fox's life flashed before his eyes as the large body of the Aparoid Queen came to greet him.

"This is it, Fox! The final battle!" He yelled, steeling himself for what lie in front of his eyes.

The Queen and Fox danced for a period of time; exchanging blows. Fox filled her eyelids with cannon fire. The Queen ripped off his Arwing's left wing entirely. It was gruesome. Fox's head was cut open badly; blood leaked everywhere as his Arwing shuddered underneath the Queen's force. Fox finally fired a shot directly through her brain, sending her tumbling downwards. Fox pursued.

Fox found himself hovering above a small platform, where a bleeding Aparoid Queen lay down, resting and dying in the cold center of the Aparoid Homeworld. He landed his Arwing and hopped out, then stumbled over to the Queen, knife in hand. The Queen's body crackled and smoked; the self-destruct program was working!

Fox knelt down, wincing in pain as blood sprayed from his hip. His face became pale; his arms weak. His eyes fluttered, opening and closing.

"I'm done… I'm done…" He panted, holding his knife in his wavering hand high above the Queen's brain. The Queen did not speak.

"My duty is done…" Fox moaned as he plunged the knife into the Queen. She screamed, gurgled, and stopped breathing. Dead. Fox left his knife inside of her.

"I'm going home…..I'm going home…." Fox panted, as the tunnel around him crumbled and melted away.

….

Fox's Arwing swerved and sparked as it launched up to the surface.

_I'm going to make it… It's over….._

He could hear the explosions behind him, the heat rising up from the depths of hell.

_It's all over…_

The Arwing shuddered and flustered.

_Almost there…_

Fox's Arwing spewed out from the tunnel like a fish out of water; gasping for air. The planet exploded behind him, jolting his Arwing forward into the darkness of space. Fox sat there for a moment, unable to tell whether he lived or died.

He lived.

He was still here.

"….ox! Wher….Fox! Fox! Are ya…." Falco's voice rang out amongst the static in his headset.

"Falco….this is Fox. I'm here."

"Fo….coming!"

…

"I can't believe it! I'm still breathing!" Slippy announced as the four Arwings glided softly through space to rendezvous with the Cornerian Fleet.

"But….So many casualities… Peppy… All those killed… all those noble sacrifices…." Krystal sat, stony-faced in her Arwing. Fox knew she could feel their presence.

"AH!" Slippy yelled, looking out to the right side of his cockpit.

"Slipp….what?" Fox groaned as blood trickled from his forehead.

"Look!"

"…you're all okay…..that…..airy…..I promise…..retire after this one…." It sounded like Peppy. But…he was dead, right?"

"Peppy?" Fox asked.

"It's Peppy!" Slippy cheered, twirling his Arwing around in the void.

"Whats up, Peppy…" Fox said, on the verge of tears. He didn't think he'd made it. Fox had installed escape pods, but…he didn't think they would be usable in Peppy's situation.

"Fox, you knew about this?" Falco asked, a bit angry, but more relieved.

"Yeah. I knew." Fox said, clutching to consciousness. "It's possible that General Pepper's gonna make it too, and many others."

"Everybody," Fox began.

"Yo!" Falco chimed in.

"What's up?" Slippy asked.

"Yes, Fox?" Krystal said.

"Hmm…what now, Fox, hm?" Peppy moaned, clearly injured as well.

"My friends… thank you. For everything. We did it. We saved the system. And I think I've learned who I am from each and every one of you in some way or another. So thanks."


	18. Big Decisions

"Wolf O'Donnel killed in skirmish?" Fox asked, reading the newspaper through his uninjured eye.

"Oh, yeah… while you were in the hospital, the Cornerian Navy hunted down all sorts of criminals to prevent rebellion whilst Corneria rebuilds…" Krystal said, frowning.

"That's not right…" Fox's voice faded into the wind.

"It's not. Not at all." Krystal sighed and sat down next to Fox on the couch, who was intently reading the article.

"He wouldn't have wanted to go out like that…I wish I could've been there to kill him. He at least deserved that…." He said, remembering Wolf's advice to him and how much it had helped against the Aparoids.

"Fox!" Krystal looked at him, shocked.

"He always told me that I should kill him or he should kill me; No other way would be just. I don't mean it maliciously, I mean it as…as a friend." Fox sighed, turning back to the paper. Krystal laid her head down on Fox's shoulder as he read.

"I'm glad you made it, though." She whispered.

"Even with this?" Fox said, pointing to the large medical pad that enveloped his left eye.

"Even with that. Besides, it's sexy." Fox couldn't help but laugh. It was only a matter of seconds before he was coughing violently.

"Fox?! Are you okay?" Krystal asked, panicking.

"I'm….I'm fine." He said, through a pained smile. He was not in great shape; two broken ribs, a broken finger, multiple concussions, a large gash millimeters from his eye.

"Fox…" Krystal began to speak as Fox regained his stature.

"Krystal?" Fox asked, confused as to what she wanted to tell him.

"I…I think maybe you should… stop all this. It's dangerous, I mean look at you! You're lucky to be here."

"Stop Star Fox? Stop my father's legacy?" Fox couldn't believe his ears. Was she SERIOUSLY telling him to do this?!

"It's dangerous… I don't want to see you get hurt, or any other members of the team for that matter…."

"Krystal…I know that. But I can't stop… This is all I have left of him…"

"I heard you, you know. In the Arwing, before the fight with the Aparoid Queen. You said that you…that you'd do anything to protect me and that you've never loved anyone as much as you love me…." She said, losing herself in his emerald glare.

"These things are true. I do love you more than I've ever loved any person, even my father. But… to give up now… I don't know. I want to protect you, I do, but… you're asking me to give my life away and…it's a tough decision."

"I can't look at you like this all the time. I can't do it, Fox. I am physically in pain right now. And guess where?" Krystal said, pointing to each and every place that Fox had injured. "It hurts me, Fox. A lot."

"I don't know…" Fox whispered.

"I'm not asking this of you. You can keep going on like this and I'll support you all the way."

"Krystal….I need some time. I've been thinking the same thing you have; that it's time to pull the plug. Let's face it, I'm getting a bit old for this line of work. And with injuries like these…. I can't do this forever. You're right."

"I'll give you any time you need. This isn't a decision you have to make, you know… We could just keep things the same." And with that, Krystal swiftly kissed him on the cheek and left the lounge of the Great Fox, leaving Fox alone with his mind.

_I've got to stop….the dreams, the nightmares..they all come from this. I love this work, but maybe it's time to trade that love for an even greater one…_

….

"Team, report to the command center immediately. I have an important announcement." Fox said, sighing as he lifted his finger off of the comms button.

Falco, Slippy, Peppy, and Krystal all filed in and sat down around the tiny meeting table.

"I wanted to talk about the..future of the team. Where's it's going to go…" Fox began indecisively.

"Alright, lay it on us." Falco pushed.

"Guys… I'm disbanding the team." Fox said, watching as each person's face changed drastically.

"What?! Fox, you can't be serious!" Falco gawked, his face filled with confusion.

"I am. We're getting too old for this. And, sooner or later, we'll just be washed up old fools. I'm ending this now so that we can get a start on our own lives."

"Fox…no!" Slippy said on the verge of tears.

"What the hell, man!?" Falco was angry now.

Krystal stayed silent.

"What do you mean, 'get a start on our lives?!' This IS my life!" Falco shouted, gesturing at around the room.

"I support you, Fox." Peppy said at a normal tone, interrupting Falco.

"Fox… you really think so?" Slippy asked, still in disbelief.

"We've had a good run, guys. But if we keep going, it's only going to get worse. I hope you're all not mad…." Fox whimpered, quietly.

"I'm mad! Fox, the fuck!? I thought this was gonna be some Golden Age speech about how great things were going! You can't stop this! Where's my say? How come I don't get to choose too?!" Falco said, standing up and beating his chest.

"Falco…" Fox sighed.

"No, no, no. Don't 'Falco…' me! You're just deciding how my life's gonna work now!? Like hell you are!" Falco picked up his jacket, flustering. "I'm leaving! Fuck you guys, I'll go run my own Star Fox!" he was out the door in seconds.

"Falco!" Fox yelled after him, only to hear the clang of the titanium doors closing.

"Ah….shit." Fox sat down, holding his face in his hand. He opted not to go after him. What Falco did was Falco's business now.

"So…" Fox started after minutes of silence, "Do you guys agree with me?"

"Like I said, I think it's the right choice." Peppy said, beaming with somber pride.

"I'm….I'm gonna miss you guys!" Slippy said, bawling like a baby.

Krystal just nodded, watching Slippy cry.


	19. The Question

"Hmm…" Fox said, browsing the wares in the glass box in front of him. He bit his nails nervously; this was an important decision. Which would work for her? What would she like the most? Something simple, or something extravagant?

"Let me see your collection of emeralds," Fox said, finally able to collect his thoughts and form words. None of the emeralds seemed right to him. It had to be something special, something unique. Fox didn't like to be cliché, nor did he like to be too original. It had to show affection, but this affection had to feel true. If there was too much money involved, it didn't feel….real to Fox.

"Do you have anything... exotic? Not exactly rare, just…different?"

The clerk pulled out an assortment of strange little stones. Some looked like you could find them in any cave; others looked like there may be only one in existence.

And then he saw it. The deep, aquamarine stone he had seen only once before. It was exactly as he remembered it.

"What is this one?" Fox asked, pointing to the stone and leaning in for a closer look at it.

"That's… that's a…well, actually, I'm not really sure…" the clerk said, puzzled.

It had a mesmerizing quality to it. Fox couldn't take his eyes off of it. A dark blue mist swirled inside the gem, flowing as if it were a river. A whole world seemed alive in that gem…

"I'll take it."

…

Fox jostled the tie, fitting it snugly around his neck. He looked at himself in the mirror.

_I look like I'm walking down Death Row._

Fox walked into the bathroom and splashed some water on his reddish face.

_Get a hold of yourself. _

His breath was ragged and had no rhythm. Fox wasn't entirely sure he'd be able to do this.

_I wish I didn't piss off Falco like that; he'd probably be here backing me up if I didn't. _

Fox stumbled swiftly over to the window.

Krystal was outside, looking around. She wore a magnificent red dress that contrasted her fur surprisingly well.

"Oh…I can't do this…." Fox moaned quietly, moving away from the door.

"No, no. I have to. I love this woman. I love her."

Fox looked at the small box on his nightstand. Inside of it was a silver ring with the small, unidentified gem inside of it. Fox stared at it for a short time; watching the black river as it twisted and twirled.

"Alright… Let's do it." Fox said, stuffing the tiny box into his right pocket and heading downstairs.

…..

Krystal stood alone in the courtyard, admiring the scenery. A table set for two, the perfect lighting, the water splashing in the fountain nearby, the rose petals leading from the entrance. Maybe tonight really was going to be it.

Fox stepped forth from the darkness and into the warm lighting of the courtyard. He motioned for the table, smiling, but not speaking. Truth be told, Fox wasn't sure he COULD speak.

The two ate in a joyful silence, not taking their eyes off of the pair of eyes that lay in front of them. It was, once again, one of those odd moments that were only found in their relationship and theirs' alone; the moment of quiet where all was understood without the use of the invented languages of civilization.

Fox stood, taking Krystal's hand and leading her to the center of the courtyard. He snapped his fingers, which caused music to begin playing…the perfect sound of a solitary violin playing in the night. Krystal looked around for the source of the song while Fox placed his hand in his pocket, running his paw back and forth over the tiny velvet box.

"Krystal….I know I have not always been there for you." His speech was clear and fluid. It was the most sophisticated side of Fox she'd ever seen.

"I…I ignored you for such a long time…. I was a fool. But…when faced with a tough decision…I often find myself floundering and failing. I know I got this one right." He said, smiling at her through one side of his mouth, and then leaning down on one knee.

"Krystal…uhm…" his voice cracked.

"Will….will you marry me?" He said, taking the tiny box out of his pocket and holding it up for her to see, bowing his head.

The silence returned, the violin had halted for a moment. She stood there, watching Fox. He didn't move, he didn't beg. He only awaited her decision, and respectful kneeled as she thought. What a man he was….

"That's a stupid question, Fox." She said, pulling him up from the floor, smiling. A single tear rolled down her cheek.

"I love you." She whispered, placing her lips onto his. Neither of them could tell how long they stayed like this.


	20. Thanksgiving

Fox walked along the street, near empty, quietly. He was happy right now; and he wanted to talk to somebody while this feeling enveloped him. The silence of the streets would have normally frightened him, but, in the warm air of a dying spring day, Fox welcomed the peace and quiet of a sleepy city.

Looking at his past was something Fox learned to do earlier than most people. He found it easy to reminisce and wonder about how things could have happened. And, at this moment, Fox found himself thinking about how much his life had changed in the past decade. With a wedding coming soon, now seemed like the perfect time to remember and to thank those who had helped him out of his hole.

Fox remembered the stinging pain of loneliness that haunted his thoughts all those years ago. Nobody seemed to be there for him, and Fox didn't really care. All he wanted to do was cramp all the agony into his little head and let it eat away at him until he exploded in space. And then, a glimmer of hope.

He found Krystal entrapped on Sauria.

Their meeting was quite strange, actually. Why did she captivate him like she did? Fox didn't care; all he knew was that he loved this woman and that he wanted to spend his entire life with her. He was lucky she was still around when he realized this.

But, besides Krystal, who else was there to thank for making Fox realize who he truly was? Fox spent days figuring out a long, long list of all the people he needed to thank.

That list included his father.

Fox pushed the old iron gate open and stepped inside. It had been a long time since he had been here, in the cemetery. He didn't like remembering that day 12 years ago, when his childhood melted away in the blink of an eye and the fist of reality came crashing into his face.

Fox began to walk slower and slower as he approached James McCloud's final resting place. What had changed? Why was Fox different now?

He remembered at that moment that 12 years ago, one word dominated his mind.

_Love._

Back then it was a negative word to him. Fox hated everything. But now, love seemed to be who he was. Fox WAS love.

Fox stood over the small tombstone. It was like any other grave, and, as with any other grave, it only meant something to a specific group of people. He sat down, crossing his legs. Fox ran his hand over the imprint of his father's name.

"James McCloud…" he whispered, moving his hand over each letter.

"Born: 3954. Died: 4009…. Beloved Father and Pilot." It was then that Fox noticed something that hadn't been there the last time he was here.

Etched crudely into the stone was a word, placed directly underneath the phrase, 'Beloved Father and Pilot.'

_Love._

Fox smiled as he ran his hand over the etching. He didn't put it there, but he had a good idea of who did. She loved leaving him little surprises, especially when she could use her telepathy to make them a bit more special.

Fox then stood up and walked away, feeling complete. Like something had filled him, like there was nothing more he could do to find out who he was. This feeling of completeness was something Fox had never felt before, but he knew he would feel it until the day he died.

Fox's void had been filled.

**And that's that. I want to thank you all for the support of this story; I honestly didn't think I would get so much love for it. I hope you enjoyed reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it. I feel this story was a huge success for two reasons. First, I think this is a much more organized and centered story than my previous fic, Star Fox: My Life is Yours (This story is a prequel to that one.), which was what I intended to do with this. I wanted to focus in and write about one or two things, rather than dividing the story into multiple side stories which were all occurring at the same time. And, secondly, I think this was successful because I've learned a lot and that I've been able to guide other people down the same path that I currently walk. **

**If you want more content, you can check out my other fics, or my one shot collection. **

**As of now I'm going to take a week off to regroup and recuperate. A brand new story should come out on Sunday, April 13****th****. Until then, I may put out a one shot or two. **

**Again, I can't thank you all enough for the support I've been receiving. I've had people contacting me saying that I'm the reason they started writing or that I'm their favorite writer, and my only response to that is this; You really do me too much honor. It's a really humbling thing for me, and for once in my life I'm starting to think about someone other than myself. **

**Until next time, **

**-ThatWinchieGuy**


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